CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Broadband

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the average broadband speed in (a) Glasgow North West constituency, (b) Glasgow, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK.

Edward Vaizey: The Independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries (Ofcom) publishes broadband coverage data for the UK; its 2013 UK fixed-line broadband performance report indicates the following average modem synchronisation speed for the Glasgow City, Scotland and the UK. Data by constituency area is not available.
	
		
			 Average modem sync speed 2013 
			  Mbit/s 
			 Glasgow City 17.2 
			 Scotland 15.8 
			 UK 17.6

Sports: Children

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps his Department is taking to encourage primary school children to become active and involved in local sports organisations.

Helen Grant: Over 17,500 schools are voluntarily taking part in the Sainsbury’s School Games—over 70% of all schools in England—including approximately 13,000 primary schools. Participating schools can choose from sports formats developed by 31 national governing bodies for sport. Schools are supported by 450 School Games organisers across the country, who are connecting School Games to community sports clubs to help ensure activity is sustained beyond school.
	In addition, through the primary PE and sport premium, we are investing over £450 million across government (up to and including the academic year 2015/16) to improve physical education and sport in primary schools. Heads are free to choose how they use the funding to secure the greatest impact, which may include working with local sports organisations and/or increasing pupils’ participation in the School Games.

PRIME MINISTER

Life Peers

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Prime Minister how many life peerages have been created since 2010; and how many such peerages have been as a result of having been nominated by political parties.

David Cameron: Details are available on the House of Lords Appointments Commission website.

CABINET OFFICE

Childbirth

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many births, broken down by the week of pregnancy in which the birth occurred, there were in England in the last year for which figures are available.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated June 2014
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Health how many births, broken down by the week of pregnancy in which the birth occurred, there were in England in the last year for which figures are available. (199856)
	Information on gestational age (length of pregnancy) is not routinely recorded at the registration of live births. However, ONS links birth registrations to NHS birth notifications data to publish figures by gestational age. These figures are less timely than statistics based on birth registrations only.
	Table 1 below provides the numbers of live births by each completed week's gestation for 2011 (the most recent period for which figures are available).
	Published statistics on births and infant deaths by gestational age for England and Wales are available on the Office for National Statistics website:
	www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/child-health/gestation-specific-infant-mortality-in-england-and-wales/index.html
	
		
			 Table 1: Live births by gestational age, England, 20111, 2 
			  Live births 
			 <22 170 
			 23 282 
			 24 446 
			 25 510 
			 26 646 
			 27 771 
			 28 981 
			 29 1,115 
			 30 1,419 
			 31 1,886 
			 32 2,791 
			 33 3,771 
			 34 6,475 
			 35 9,196 
			 36 18,182 
			 37 39,122 
			 38 89,033 
			 39 153,508 
			 40 185,411 
			 41 135,819 
			 42 27,525 
			 Total 679,059 
			 1 Excludes those with low gestational age inconsistent with birth weight, or with gestational age not stated. 2 Excludes births to non-residents. Source: Office for National Statistics.

Civil Servants: Equal Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which Departments regularly publish details of their gender pay gap at each Civil Service grade.

Francis Maude: The Office for National Statistics publishes median earnings by responsibility level, Government Department and gender annually as part of Civil Service Statistics and this data can be found at:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/pse/civil-service-statistics/2013/stb-civil-service-statistics--2013.html

Government Departments

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what sources of income from organisations funded from the public purse each member of each government department's board has.

Francis Maude: Departments are required to disclose the details of company directorships and other significant interests held by Board members which may conflict with their management responsibilities twice yearly.
	Copies of the Register of Board Members’ Interests are laid in the House of Commons Library, alongside the Annual Report and Accounts, and are available on request.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that Index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national wellbeing as defined in that Index since 2010.

Nick Hurd: This Government is starting to advance the use of wellbeing indicators in policy formulation.
	Evidence provided to the Environmental Audit Committee for its Inquiry into Wellbeing can be found at:
	http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/environmental-audit-committee/inquiries/parliament-2010/well-being/

Social Justice Committee

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many times the Social Justice Cabinet Committee has met since 5 May 2010; what issues were on the agenda for each such meeting; and which Ministers attended each such meeting.

Oliver Letwin: It is established practice that information relating to the proceedings of Cabinet Committees, including when and how often they meet, which Ministers have attended and the content of agendas, is not disclosed.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Disciplinary Proceedings

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of staff within her Department who have been subject to formal disciplinary proceedings in each of the last five financial years classed themselves as white British.

Theresa Villiers: Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010, and subsequent reconfiguration of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010. Attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost.
	Since April 2010, seven members of staff have been subject to formal disciplinary proceedings. Given the small numbers involved, it would not be appropriate to provide any further breakdown as to do so would risk the identification of the individuals concerned.

Disciplinary Proceedings

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of staff within her Department who have been dismissed following formal disciplinary proceedings in each of the last five financial years classed themselves as white British.

Theresa Villiers: Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010, and subsequent reconfiguration of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010. Attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost.
	Since April 2010, two members of staff have been dismissed following formal disciplinary proceedings. Given the small numbers involved, it would not be appropriate to provide any further breakdown as to do so would risk the identification of the individuals concerned.

Equal Opportunities

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what targets her Department has for increasing diversity; and what progress has been made on meeting those targets in the last year.

Theresa Villiers: My Department has not set specific targets, but is fully committed to fulfilling its statutory responsibilities, including the duties set out under fair employment legislation and the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

Giro d'Italia

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment she has made of the Giro D'Italia in Northern Ireland; and what plans she has to ensure a positive legacy from the event.

Theresa Villiers: The Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) estimates that the Giro d'ltalia “Grande Partenza” was viewed by 775 million people in 165 countries across the world giving this huge audience the opportunity to enjoy the wonderful scenery of Northern Ireland. NITB has estimated that the event should generate 140,000 tourist visits to Northern Ireland.
	Building on the legacy of the Giro d'ltalia is, of course, for the Northern Ireland Executive to take forward and I understand that the Assembly has discussed the issue.

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Equal Opportunities

Dominic Raab: To ask the Ministers for Women and Equalities how often Section 159 of the Equality Act 2010 has been used by employers in relation to recruitment or promotion of an individual with protected characteristics in each year since 2011.

Helen Grant: The information requested is not collected or held centrally.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate Change: Conferences

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which Ministers in his Department attended the most recent Bonn Climate Change Conference.

Gregory Barker: The UK is represented at senior official levels at the current Bonn Climate Change Intersessional conference. It is a mid-year meeting paving the way for the Lima Conference of the Parties (COP) in December and Ministers do not usually attend the Bonn meetings. I am fully behind reaching a global deal in Paris, am talking to many parties both formally and informally and will attend further international engagements later this year.

Climate Change: Conferences

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the outcome of the most recent Bonn Climate Change Conference; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The Bonn Climate Change Intersessional Conference is not expected to finish until 15 June, so we will not have a concrete assessment of the session until then. The meeting is a mid-year one to pave the way for the Lima Conference of the Parties (COP) in December. This meeting in Bonn will focus on negotiations on the new global climate change deal that will be agreed in 2015, on work to enhance emissions reductions efforts in the years to 2020, when the new deal will come into effect, and to continue to progress the UN climate regime’s subsidiary agenda, covering rules, mechanisms, reporting and other areas implementing past decisions.
	Even though there will not be an outcome, we want the meeting in Bonn to focus on technical and practical discussions to pave the way for countries to bring forward, in early 2015, their contributions to the new agreement and to make progress towards agreeing in Lima draft elements of a negotiating text—these are important milestones for the 2015 agreement.
	As we are not expecting any outcomes, I do not anticipate the need to make a statement.

Climate Change: Northern Ireland

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what future discussions he has planned with his counterpart in the Northern Ireland Executive on climate change.

Gregory Barker: The UK has an open dialogue with the devolved Administrations to discuss matters relating to climate change. This includes consulting the devolved Administrations, including the Northern Ireland Executive, on the UK position on the international negotiations ahead of the annual UNFCCC Conference of the Parties.

Energy: Carers

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the adequacy of provision of information for carers on affordable energy;
	(2)  what recent discussions he has had with energy companies on the affordability of energy tariffs for carers.

Michael Fallon: DECC Ministers and officials meet energy company representatives on a regular basis to discuss market issues.
	It is important that all consumers, including carers, have access to information to help them make informed decisions about their energy use. That is why Ofgem introduced a new simpler tariff framework consisting of a tariff information label and tariff comparison rate to make it easier for consumers to compare tariffs across the market. In April Ofgem launched the “Be An Energy Shopper” campaign to empower consumers to shop around for a better deal for their energy.

Fracking

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what representations he has received on fracking in 2014.

Michael Fallon: The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), has received a number of representations on various aspects of hydraulic fracturing.

Fracking: Lancashire

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many (a) officials and (b) Ministers in his Department have visited Lancashire for purposes related to fracking since 2010.

Michael Fallon: I and a number of my officials have made a number of visits to Lancashire in relation to shale gas operations and are regularly in touch with a number of stakeholders in the region.
	On 24 April I took part in a conference organised by the North West Energy Taskforce and the two Lancashire Chambers of Commerce in order to highlight to Lancashire business the potential opportunities from successful shale gas development.

Fuel Poverty

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 6 February 2014, Official Report, column 383W, on Energy Companies Obligation, what progress he has made on publishing proposals on the form, level and date for a new fuel poverty target in England; and when he expects to publish those proposals.

Gregory Barker: The Government is preparing proposals on a new fuel poverty objective for England in line with the provisions of the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that Index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national wellbeing as defined in that Index since 2010.

Gregory Barker: The National Wellbeing Index contains two measures directly related to DECC's priorities: “Energy consumed within the UK from renewable sources” and “Total greenhouse gas emissions”, where latest data shows the positive impact being made by DECC. For example in 2013, provisional data shows 15% of electricity being produced from renewable sources-a new high. To provide further support for renewable and other forms of low carbon generation DECC is implementing Electricity Market Reform, in particular provisions for Feed-in-Tariffs with Contracts for Difference. Since 2010 DECC has also launched the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme to provide support for renewable heat in both the domestic and non-domestic sectors.
	More broadly, a number of DECC's policies, such as the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) which funds efficient boilers and insulation measures to low income and vulnerable households and is now guaranteed until at least 2017, contribute toward other aspects of the National Wellbeing Index, for example “Getting by financially”.

Nuclear Safeguards

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many withdrawals of nuclear materials from safeguards applied under the tripartite UK-Euratom-IAEA Voluntary Safeguards Agreement there have been since May 2010; and how many such withdrawals were permanent.

Michael Fallon: Information on nuclear material withdrawn from safeguards is available on the Office for Nuclear Regulation website at:
	www.onr.org.uk/safeguards/withdrawals.htm
	in the same format as provided to Parliament on 28 July 2000, Official Report, column 1094W, and in the written answer to Parliament on 1 March 2001, Official Report, columns 732-33W. The website provides annual reports on withdrawals from 2001 to 2013. As indicated in footnote 3 to each table, the advance notifications of withdrawal of depleted uranium shielded containers were temporary. All other withdrawals were permanent.
	In 2014, the notifications received to date are as follows:
	
		
			 Summary of notifications of withdrawals from safeguards, 2014, year to date 
			 Number of withdrawal notifications (by type of nuclear material involved)1 Reason for withdrawal 
			 One notification involving plutonium (Pu), microgramme quantities One notification for use in analysis/analytical purposes (e.g. samples, standards/tracers and/or in instrument calibration) from organisations that provide standards/tracers and/or nuclear material for instrument calibration2 One notification also involved mg quantities of natural uranium2 
			 Two notifications involving high enriched uranium (HEU), total~ 0.4 g Two notifications for material contained in radiation detectors2 (from a company that manufactures radiation detectors) 
			 Nine notifications involving depleted uranium (DU), total ~348 kg Nine notifications for depleted uranium as shielding containers3 
			 1 Tabulated information covers advance notifications of withdrawal approved by ONR - Safeguards. 2 There are no facilities outside safeguards that have material in such quantities and forms, and defence establishment requirements for these specialist materials have therefore been met by supply from civil organisations. 3 The advance notifications of withdrawal for depleted uranium shielded containers were for temporary withdrawals, the containers being used during the replacement of spent radioactive sources at UK defence establishments.

Oil: Libya

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many barrels of oil were exported from Libya to the UK in each of the last five years.

Michael Fallon: The following table shows imports of crude oil to the United Kingdom from Libya for each of the last five years. The data are rounded to the nearest 1,000 barrels and the 2013 number is provisional
	
		
			 Imports of crude oil to the UK from Libya (barrels at 7.37 per tonne) 
			  Barrels 
			 2013 14,828,000 
			 2012 21,557,000 
			 2011 5,638,000 
			 2010 20,032,000 
			 2009 13,598,000

Renewable Energy

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 14 May 2014, Official Report, column 597W, on renewable energy, what assessment his Department has made of what the market conditions that will enable independent generators to use short-term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) and a wider variety of PPA counterparties will have developed in time for independent generators to secure necessary finance terms ahead of the first CfD auctions which are scheduled for October 2014.

Michael Fallon: In general, short-term Power Purchase Agreements are widely available in the current market, but providers of project finance tend to require long-term PPAs. The Offtaker of Last Resort (OLR) mechanism will provide additional certainty for projects with a Contract for Difference which should enable them to consider a wider range of routes to market and a wider range of offtakers, including short-term PPAs.
	My officials have worked closely with developers, expert advisers and other stakeholders in working up the OLR proposals and to understand the likely impacts on the PPA market. The policy design is at an advanced stage, and the detail of the proposals has been recently consulted on. We are on track to deliver the final policy and introduce enabling regulations ahead of the first allocation of CfDs. CfD applicants will have a high degree of clarity about the arrangements for OLR, in advance of the first auctions.

Renewable Energy

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 14 May 2014, Official Report, column 597W, on renewable energy, what the evidential basis was for the statement made in the Government's response on competitive allocation that Power Purchase Agreements could be signed on a conditional basis before a strike price needs to be submitted, allowing independent generators to receive indicative financing terms from lenders; and what representations he has received from generators on that statement.

Michael Fallon: The Government’s response to the consultation on competitive allocation set out its expectation that the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) market will evolve such that PPAs could be signed on a conditional basis. We have discussed this with stakeholders and have identified no significant barriers that prevent conditional Power Purchase Agreements being agreed prior to the allocation of Contracts for Difference. Furthermore, some PPA participants have since confirmed that they are prepared to consider approaches from generators on this basis.

UK Coal

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to his statement of 10 April 2014, Official Report, columns 24-25WS, on UK Coal Production Ltd, when the £10 million interest bearing loan to UK Coal will be complete.

Michael Fallon: I refer the hon. Member to the written statement I made today (“Update concerning UK Coal”) as Minister of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	As stated, I will continue to keep the House updated.

Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions (a) he, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) officials in his Department have had with their counterparts in HM Treasury on the operation of the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), Ministers and officials have regular contact with counterparts from other Government Departments, including HM Treasury, on a range of issues, including fuel poverty.

Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the operation of (a) section 1 and (b) section 2 of the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000; what recent representations he has received on the operation of this Act; and what responses he gave to such representations.

Gregory Barker: The Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000 has been amended through the Energy Act 2013. In line with the provisions of the amended Act, the Government will lay draft regulations in Parliament setting out a new fuel poverty objective for England. Once the new objective has been made in regulations, we will publish a strategy for meeting that objective.
	Both the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), and I receive representations and meet with stakeholders regularly to discuss a range of issues relating to fuel poverty. For example, we attend meetings of the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group when possible, most recently in April 2014.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of when the Afghanistan Air Force will be ready to function independently of US and UK support.

Mark Francois: The Afghan Air Force (AAF) is trained in accordance with the wider International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Afghan National Security Force (ANSF) development strategy. ISAF envisages that the AAF will be at full operational capability with the required trained personnel, aircraft and equipment by the end of 2017.

Afghanistan

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of the Afghanistan National Army has deserted in each month since January 2010.

Mark Francois: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Leicestershire (Mr Robathan), on 13 November 2012, Official Report, column 161W.

Africa

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 25 March 2014, Official Report, column 180W, on Africa, whether any service personnel are embedded with host forces or otherwise stationed in (a) Niger, (b) Nigeria and (c) the Seychelles.

Mark Francois: There are no UK service personnel embedded with host forces or otherwise stationed in Niger.
	The UK has a small number of personnel deployed to Nigeria in roles including diplomatic representation, defence engagement, liaison and training. As part of the package of support to Nigeria announced by the Prime Minister last month, an additional small team of experts has also deployed to help Nigeria establish an Intelligence Fusion Cell with French and US partners to assist the Nigerian Government in locating the abducted school girls.
	In the Seychelles, a Royal Naval officer is currently serving as a liaison officer for the European Union Naval Force Somalia (EUNAVFOR).

Africa

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any UK service personnel are embedded or otherwise stationed in (a) Ethiopia and (b) Chad.

Mark Francois: The UK has a small number of service personnel deployed to Ethiopia in roles including diplomatic representation, defence engagement, liaison and training.
	No UK service personnel are currently embedded or otherwise stationed in Chad.

Armed Conflict: Children

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what support his Department is giving to the UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict for the campaign to eradicate the recruitment of children by government armed forces by 2016.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence provides no formal support to the UN Special Representative, but is taking steps to ensure that our recruitment activities are in accordance with Article 38 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as stated in the answer given on 13 May 2013, Official Report, column 98W, to the hon. Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun (Cathy Jamieson).

Armed Forces Covenant: Northern Ireland

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which charitable projects based in Northern Ireland have benefited from the armed forces covenant (Libor) fund.

Anna Soubry: The importance of the covenant to the Government was highlighted by the decision of the Chancellor to transfer £35 million from fines levied on the banks for attempting to manipulate LIBOR to the Ministry of Defence for use in supporting the armed forces community. The fund has now closed and money has been allocated to some 97 projects.
	The Northern Irish armed forces community will benefit from a number of UK-wide projects which have been allocated over £16 million of LIBOR funding. In addition, we have provided £50,000 of funding to the UDR and Royal Irish Aftercare Service to set up a welfare support network and advisory service for veterans and their dependants in Northern Ireland.

Armed Forces: British Nationality

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Foreign and Commonwealth personnel from each country of origin who were made redundant from the armed forces in each year since 2010 were subsequently unable to meet the five-year rule to apply for citizenship; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: Foreign and Commonwealth personnel with four years’ service in the armed forces service can apply, in the interim, for settlement. This process regularises their immigration status while they qualify and meet the mandated Home Office criteria to apply for citizenship.
	The Ministry of Defence has completed an analysis of personnel records and I can confirm that no Foreign and Commonwealth personnel with less than four years’ service were made redundant since 2010. Therefore redundancy from the armed forces would not have prevented personnel from applying for settlement or citizenship.

Armed Forces: Discharges

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many requests for discharge were made by soldiers aged (a) 19 and (b) 20 years who had served at least three years in the regular Army in the last five years; and what the outcome was of each such request.

Anna Soubry: Soldiers must normally serve a minimum of three years before they can voluntarily discharge with a year’s notice. Consequently, the number of applications from 19-year-olds is lower than from those aged 20 years of age. "Requests for discharge" has been interpreted as Voluntary Outflow Applications which are recorded on the Joint Personnel Administration system.
	The number of applications for voluntary discharge made by trained Regular Soldiers aged 19 and 20 between 1 March 2009 and 1 March 2014 are shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Age on Application No of Applications 
			 19 50 
			 20 330 
			 Total 380 
			 Source: Defence Statistics (Army) 
		
	
	These figures include some personnel who applied for voluntary release, but who were subsequently discharged for other reasons. The actual numbers discharged between 1 March 2009 and 31 March 2014, and the reasons for the discharge are shown as follows:
	
		
			  Age on Application 
			  19 years 20 years 
			 Voluntary Outflow 20 240 
			 Administrative discharge 10 30 
			 Medical/Other — 10 
			 Total 30 270 
			 Note: Figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in "5" have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. Source: Defence Statistics (Army). 
		
	
	These figures exclude requests for medical, administrative and disciplinary discharges. Some applications may have been withdrawn at a later date and that some individual soldiers may have applied for voluntary discharge more than once.

Armed Forces: Young People

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what training programmes or qualifications are available to recruits who enlist as minors which are not available to those who enlist aged 18 years or over.

Anna Soubry: Young people joining the Army attend Phase 1 training at the Army Foundation College (Harrogate) and complete different programmes depending on the part of the Army they wish to join. Full details of the training offered at Harrogate is available at this link:
	http://www.army.mod.uk/training_education/24420.aspx
	For the Royal Navy and RAF, age at enlistment has no bearing on the training programmes or qualifications available during initial training.
	Irrespective of the age that an individual joins the armed forces, approximately 90% of all recruits complete an apprenticeship within three years of joining.

Armed Forces: Young People

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many recruits under the age of 18 years at (a) enlistment and (b) the point of submitting their application to join the armed forces who stated in section 3 of AFCO Form 4 that they were unemployed, completed training and moved into trained strength in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Anna Soubry: This information is not held in the format requested.

Armed Forces: Young People

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many recruits enlisting in the armed forces under the age of 18 years had previously (a) been convicted of a criminal offence, (b) received a caution from the police, (c) received an antisocial behaviour order and (d) been permanently excluded from school in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Anna Soubry: This information is not held in the format requested.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the MRV-P programme concept phase to be completed; whether funding for a demonstration has been approved; and what funds have been allocated for this purpose.

Philip Dunne: The Multi Role Vehicle (Protected) (MRV-P) Concept Phase will be completed by early spring 2015, at which point we expect the results to be submitted for Initial Gate Business Case consideration. Funds have been allocated for the delivery of the project.

Army

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers who enlisted in the Army aged (a) under 18 and (b) 18 years and above dropped out before completing phase two training in the last 10 financial years.

Mark Francois: ‘Enlistment’ has been interpreted as those who joined the untrained strength, for example those that begin Phase 1 training. Totals for the period between 1 April 2004 and 31 March 2014 are shown as follows:
	
		
			  Untrained Strength 
			 Age on Entry Intake Outflow 
			 Under 18 35,190 12,300 
			 18 and over 64,950 17,250 
			 Unknown 430 430 
			 Total 100,570 29,980 
			 Source: Defence Statistics (Army) 
		
	
	Personnel may leave the army for a number of reasons, including medical and fitness factors, disciplinary reasons, or voluntary withdrawal. Those who join-up under 18 years of age have a statutory right to discharge from the armed forces within six months if they feel they are unsuited to service life.
	The figures in the table exclude Gurkhas, Full Time Reserve Service, Mobilised Reserves, Army Reserve and all other Reserves.
	Where an individual’s entry date is blank on the records, the age on entry has not been able to be calculated and is shown as ‘unknown’.
	Figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in ‘5’ have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. Totals and sub-totals have been rounded separately and so may not be the sum of their parts.

AWE Aldermaston

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has spent on Atomic Weapons Establishment facilities at Aldermaston in each of the last five years.

Philip Dunne: Expenditure specifically on AWE facilities at Aldermaston is not held in the format requested. Contract payments for AWE are made against an agreed programme of work that covers all AWE sites; Aldermaston, Burghfield and Blacknest. These costs are not recorded according to site.

Boskalis

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many contracts have been awarded by his Department to Boskalis over the last five years; and on how many occasions during the contract period such contractors have been found responsible for breaching environmental guidance, thereby committing an offence.

Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has awarded no new direct contracts to Boskalis Westminster NV or any of its subsidiaries in the last five years. There is one existing contract in place with SMIT, a towage and salvage company which is a subsidiary of Boskalis, and this was awarded in 2002, under the last Administration, for marine base support services. In addition, Boskalis performs some dredging duties at Portsmouth, Marchwood and Plymouth under subcontract to Debut.
	Boskalis has been issued with a formal warning on one occasion for breaching a licence issued by the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) to allow dredging at Devonport by disposing on an incoming tide. Boskalis immediately informed the MMO of their error and the formal warning was issued. No further action is being taken.

Defence: Procurement

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 18 December 2013, Official Report, column 636W, on defence: procurement, what the final costs are of establishing a Golo and running the tendering process.

Philip Dunne: The final cost of supporting our work on the Government Owned Contractor Operated (GOGO) competition is £7.4 million. This investment has provided valuable insight into the challenges involved in establishing a successful GOCO. The outputs from this work will be retained to inform any future GOCO competition should a decision be taken to re-examine this model as part of the continuing transformation of Defence Equipment and Support.

Djibouti

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 4 February 2014, Official Report, column 169W, on Djibouti, from which squadron armed forces have been deployed at Camp Lemonnier; and what role is undertaken by each UK officer embedded with US forces at that location.

Mark Francois: The three UK armed forces personnel embedded in Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa (CJFT-HOA) at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti are currently from the Royal Regiment of Artillery, the Corps of Royal Engineers, and the Intelligence Corps. Their roles involve planning and supporting US military operations in East Africa.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what modifications to the original design of the Queen Elizabeth aircraft carriers were necessary to accommodate repeated vertical landings by the Joint Strike Fighter; what estimate he has made of the heat produced by vertical landing by the Joint Strike Fighter which has the heaviest safe configuration to allow the procedure; and whether vertical landings can take place on any flat area of the carrier deck.

Philip Dunne: The ability of the ship to support F-35B vertical landings has been incorporated into the design of Queen Elizabeth Class (QEC) aircraft carrier from the outset. Environmental considerations including heat generation and dissipation have been thoroughly evaluated, including assessments from trials on the USS Wasp. UK assessments have covered all necessary aircraft configurations.
	The QEC Flight Deck has been designed with specific operating spots for vertical landing to deliver maximum Sortie Generation Rate. These are the spots where the F-35B will plan to land vertically on a routine basis. If required, in the event of an emergency the whole flight deck can support vertical landing.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence at which RAF bases the Joint Strike Fighter can regularly land vertically.

Philip Dunne: RAF Marham is planned to be the only RAF base in the UK at which the Joint Strike Fighter can conduct vertical landings regularly. The Joint Strike Fighter will of course be able to land conventionally and conduct slow landings at other RAF bases.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Joint Strike Fighter 35-B will be equipped with a collision warning system.

Philip Dunne: The F-35 has a limited collision warning system in its early capability block which is supplemented by advanced sensors and software to provide pilots with a much higher level of situational awareness than on our existing platforms. The full ground and air collision warning system is under development and planned and funded for integration into the aircraft in line with its introduction into UK service.

Military Aircraft

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to mitigate the risks to defence aviation safety systems and culture referred to in the Defence Air Safety Annual Report July 2012 to August 2013; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Francois: The risks highlighted in the annual report represented an aggregate of air safety risks across the regulated community. These are held by suitably qualified and experienced personnel and are actively managed and mitigated.

Military Aircraft

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to put out to tender the contract to provide military air traffic management at British and overseas bases.

Philip Dunne: Following advertisement in the Official Journal of the European Union in March 2011, bidders submitted outline proposals to provide military air traffic management at British and overseas bases (Project MARSHALL). Two bidders submitted detailed proposals in January 2014. The second round of dialogue commenced in April 2014 and will conclude when the bidders are asked to submit their final tender proposals in late summer 2014.

Risk Assessment

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what records his Department keeps of the monthly 2-star assessments of its risk registers.

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence makes extensive use of risk management tools and techniques across the different areas of departmental business. Risk registers are generally created, updated, and assessed as part of day-to-day management action; and the relevant records are kept at local level.

Somalia

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will take steps to recognise the service of members of the Royal Navy in patrolling operations to tackle piracy off the coast of Somalia.

Anna Soubry: The UK contribution to counter-piracy operations is held in the highest regard by our coalition partners and by this Government, and it is right to pay tribute to all those involved in maintaining maritime security vital to the European and global economy.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 10 February 2014, Official Report, column 473W, on unmanned air vehicles, when the Joint User Group for Reapers will become active; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Francois: Although a final decision on when the Joint User Group for Reaper should become active has yet to be taken, it is expected to start functioning during the autumn.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if his Department will carry out an independent qualitative assessment of the psychological and workplace stresses on the operators of remotely piloted air systems.

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence currently has no plans to undertake an independent qualitative assessment of the psychological and workplace stresses on the operators of remotely piloted air systems.
	The health and wellbeing of all of our armed forces personnel is of the utmost importance. We are mindful of the pressure and stresses that service personnel may be subjected to when supporting enduring intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations. These personnel are carefully monitored and where appropriate have access to the highest levels of military physical and mental health care. Looking after our people is one of the critical roles for our front-line commanders and they keenly focus on the well-being of their people.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether Joint Services Publication 398 on UK Rules of Engagement has been amended to reflect use of remotely piloted aircraft systems.

Mark Francois: JSP 398 was updated on 21 October 2013, replacing the previous 2004 edition. Rules of engagement govern how force can be applied in any given operation. They are not tailored to weapon system types per se, but are written to be applied as appropriate to the full spectrum of weapons systems available to UK Forces. Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) are governed by the same rules and regulations as any other weapons system; therefore the amendment of JSP 398 did not require any special provision to reflect the use of RPAS by UK Forces.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 10 February 2014, Official Report, column 474, on unmanned air vehicles: guided weapons, if his Department will publish the method and results from the UK-US firing trials of Brimstone missiles from MQ-9 Reaper.

Philip Dunne: The firing trials successfully demonstrated rapid integration of Brimstone missiles onto the MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted air system—safe carriage, safe release and system targeting—with a high success rate against static and high-speed manoeuvring targets.
	However, the final trials report has not yet been completed and it remains too early to say what information from the report, or the trial method, will be published.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department maintains (a) mission reports, (b) guided missile firing reports, (c) weapon system videos and (d) any other munitions release records for the UK Reaper fleet following the change of operational command to US pilots.

Mark Francois: Each UK Reaper sortie has a mission report produced post flight. If a weapon is fired during a sortie, a weapon report is completed detailing the engagement, as well as a video produced of the engagement itself. There are no other munitions release records for the UK Reaper fleet. US pilots have not flown UK Reaper except during the launch and recovery phase.
	Outside of the launch and recovery phase, UK Remotely Piloted Air Systems have always been operated by UK pilots.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 15 January 2014, Official Report, column 578W, on unmanned air vehicles, whether his Department maintains munitions records from the UK Reaper fleet on a sortie-by-sortie basis or for each operation carried out.

Mark Francois: After each UK Reaper sortie a mission report is written detailing the aircraft used and events of the flight. This includes weapon releases on a sortie-by-sortie basis.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department has procured any contracts for life cycle maintenance of the Reaper fleet; and for what periods.

Philip Dunne: No contracts for life cycle maintenance have been procured. Through life maintenance and support of the UK Reaper fleet is provided through the Foreign Military Sales agreement at the time the Reaper system was procured under the previous administration.

USA

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the advice provided by Jemima Stratford QC to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on drones, if his Department will take steps to investigate activities carried out at US bases owned by his Department which may be unlawful under domestic law. [R]

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence remains content with the arrangements that are in place to govern the use of UK bases by the United States Visiting Forces (USVF). The Department therefore has no plans to investigate or review the activities undertaken by the USVF.

USA

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions his Department has had with its US counterpart on identifying how the US will support the new Joint User Group for Reaper. [R]

Mark Francois: Officials representing all user nations, including the US, have had initial discussions exploring the scope, formation and management of a proposed Joint User Group for Reaper. Further discussions are planned to take place in the coming months.

Yemen

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 30 January 2014, Official Report, column 691W, on Yemen, whether his Department has undertaken any impact assessment of drone strikes in Yemen. [R]

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence has not conducted any impact assessment of kinetic strikes by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) in Yemen. As the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for Faversham and Mid Kent (Hugh Robertson), said on 30 January 2014, Official Report, column 691W, UAV strikes against terrorist targets in Yemen are a matter for the Yemeni and US Governments.

Yemen

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 4 February 2014, Official Report, column 169W, on Djibouti, whether the UK personnel embedded with US forces under US command at Camp Lemonnier provide any support to the US drone programme in Yemen; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Francois: UK armed forces personnel embedded in Combined Joint Task Force—Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, are responsible for the planning and support of US military operations in East Africa. They do not provide any support to US Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) operations in Yemen; CJTF-HOA does not oversee operations in the Middle East.

Yemen

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many UK service personnel are stationed in Yemen; and what the (a) rank, (b) squadron and (c) function is of each officer stationed in that country.

Mark Francois: There are two permanently based UK service personnel in Yemen. Both of these personnel are employed within the Defence Section at the British embassy in Sana’a. There is one Army Colonel employed as the Defence Attaché and one Army Sergeant employed as the Assistant Defence Attaché. The role of the Defence Attaché is to command the Defence Section, to represent the Chief of the Defence Staff in Yemen and Eritrea and to advise HM Ambassador on defence and security matters. The role of the Assistant Defence Attaché is to provide administrative support to the Defence Attaché.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Bovine TB

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of progress in other countries on tackling bovine TB in cattle and wildlife.

George Eustice: The success of the bovine TB eradication policies pursued in countries such as Australia, New Zealand, the United States, the Republic of Ireland and France demonstrates the need to bear down on the disease effectively in both cattle and in wildlife.
	There is no single solution.

Equine Industry: Regulation

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the burden of regulation on the equine industry in the UK.

George Eustice: As part of the Red Tape Challenge Agriculture theme, we announced in January the Government’s intention to scrap 156 regulations and improve 134 others. There were 11 reform proposals related to equine regulation in DEFRA’s Agriculture theme. An implementation plan containing these proposals was contained in DEFRA’s “Better for Business–Strategic Reform Plan” published on 9 April 2014 which is available publicly, online.

Severn Estuary Flood Defences

Neil Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs What steps he is taking to improve and maintain flood defences along the Severn Estuary.

Dan Rogerson: During this financial year the Environment Agency will invest £380,000 in maintaining flood defences and structures on the Severn Estuary in Gloucestershire. An additional £2 million will be invested to repair flood defences and structures damaged during the winter floods.
	The Severn Estuary Flood Risk Management Strategy identified a need for around £58 million of funding in Gloucestershire over the next 100 years to maintain or improve flood defences in the Estuary.

Climate Change: Funding

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what level of funding his Department provides to tackle the effects of climate change; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA spent £8.3 million in 2013-14 under its core adapting to climate change programme. This included £4.1 million to the Met Office Hadley Centre for the provision of world-leading climate science, and £1.6 million to the Environment Agency’s Climate Ready support service to help organisations across England adapt to a changing climate. Adaptation is mainstreamed across Government. Other Departments and other DEFRA programmes also fund activities that build resilience to climate change.

Environment Protection: Crime

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which companies have been (a) given warnings because of breaches of environmental law and (b) prosecuted for such breaches in each of the last five years.

Dan Rogerson: The information is as follows:
	(a) Warnings: The following table shows the total number of written warnings issued by the Environment Agency to companies in England for breaches of environmental law for the period since 2010.
	
		
			 Calendar year Number of written warnings issued by the Environment Agency in England 
			 2009 16,140 
			 2010 13,774 
			 2011 12,009 
			 2012 9,964 
			 2013 10,093 
			 Total for period 61,980 
		
	
	Due to the high volume, as recorded in the above table, it would incur disproportionate cost to collate the names of the individual companies who received such warnings.
	Records of any warning or warnings issued to the operator of a permitted site are held on the Environment Agency’s public registers, which can be viewed at the relevant Environment Agency area office. Alternatively, any individual may request information from the Environment Agency National Customer Contact Centre on a particular site or sites by telephoning 03708 506 506 or emailing: enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk
	(b) Prosecutions: The Environment Agency has successfully prosecuted 760 companies in England over the last five full calendar years. A list of the companies, in each year, will be placed in the House Library.

Flood Control

Charlie Elphicke: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of water infrastructure investment plans in tackling the problem of flooding; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: Ofwat is assessing water infrastructure investment plans for 2015-20 under the 2014 water price review. All water and sewerage companies have a duty derived from recent legislation to place greater emphasis on flood risk planning.
	The Water Industry Act 1991 has also been amended to make clear that sewerage undertakers can construct and use sustainable drainage systems to fulfil their statutory duty to effectually drain an area where it is the most economical solution.

Food

Jesse Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to help rural food and drink producers.

George Eustice: Stimulating economic growth in rural areas is a key priority for DEFRA and I recognise the importance of the food and drink sector to the rural economy.
	The Rural Development Programme is now and will continue to support food and drink producers in rural areas to deliver growth and create jobs.
	In addition, we are helping local food businesses gain recognition for protected food names. Over 60 British foods are now recognised in this way, including Herefordshire cider and perry.

Hill Farming

Mel Stride: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Government is taking to support moorland farmers.

George Eustice: We will almost double the direct payment rate in the moorland from 2015. We will also equalise the payment rates in the Severely Disadvantaged Area and the lowland. Taken together, these changes will distribute direct payments more equitably across English farms. They will also ensure that upland farmers on large areas of moorland are not put at a disadvantage in comparison with other upland farmers.

Sheep

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information his Department holds on the number of dog attacks on sheep flocks in each of the last three years.

George Eustice: DEFRA and our delivery partner, the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency, do not record this information.
	DEFRA has sourced information regarding defendants proceeded against at magistrates court, found guilty and sentenced at all courts for offences relating to dogs worrying livestock on agricultural land, England and Wales, 2011-13.1, 2, 3
	
		
			 Offence Outcome 2011 2012 2013 
			  Proceeded against 64 71 50 
			  Found guilty 53 57 37 
			  Sentenced 53 57 37 
			  Absolute discharge — 1 1 
			  Conditional discharge 10 16 5 
			  Fine 34 34 26 
			      
		
	
	
		
			 Dogs worrying livestock on agricultural land4 Community sentence — 1 — 
			  Suspended sentences — — — 
			  Otherwise dealt with 9 5 5 
			  Immediate custody — — — 
			  Average fine (£) 165.47 177.50 221.54 
			  Average custodial sentence length (months)5 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 1 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 3 The number of offenders sentenced can differ from those found guilty as it may be the case that a defendant found guilty in a particular year, and committed for sentence at the Crown court, may be sentenced in the following year. 4 Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953. 5 Excludes life and indeterminate sentences. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Age: Discrimination

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated relating to age discrimination in (i) the work place and (ii) Jobcentre Plus.

Steve Webb: The Department has not commissioned any research in the last two years specifically on age discrimination.
	(i) Previous research relating to age discrimination in the work place includes “Attitudes to age in Britain 2010/11”:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/214361/ihr7.pdf
	and “Second Survey on employers’ policies, practices and preferences relating to age, 2010”:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130128102031/http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2009-2010/rrep682.pdf
	This research was commissioned by the Department as part of wider research into the removal of the Default Retirement Age, including “Default Retirement Age– employer qualitative research”:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130128102031/http:/research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2009-2010/rrep672.pdf
	The Default Retirement Age was abolished in 2011, meaning most people can now retire when the time is right for them. Employers can now only set a fixed retirement age where it can be objectively justified in their particular circumstances, but this is open to challenge at tribunal.
	On 13 June we will be publishing “Fuller Working Lives–A Framework for Action”. The document outlines the business case for people to work longer at an individual, business, societal and economic level, and sets out a number of new actions the Department will be taking forward to promote fuller working lives.
	(ii) Relevant departmental evaluations on this issue concerning Jobcentre Plus include “How ready is Jobcentre Plus to help people in their 60s to find work?”:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-ready-is-jobcentre-plus-to-help-people-in-their-60s-find-work-ihr11
	Also, where possible surveys of benefit claimants are broken down by age, for example “The Jobcentre Plus Offer: Final evaluation report”:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/261656/rrep852.pdf

Children: Maintenance

Teresa Pearce: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make the Child Maintenance Options Service 0800 telephone number free to all callers, including mobile telephone users.

Steve Webb: Calls to the Child Maintenance Options 0800 telephone number are free from BT land lines but customers may have to pay if they use another telephone company or a mobile, or if they are calling from abroad. We are currently finalising arrangements with the six major mobile network providers to make the numbers free to call from their networks.
	In the meantime, callers contacting the Child Maintenance Options service from a mobile telephone are informed by their network provider that they will be charged. Callers using mobile telephones can request the Options service to call them back, or alternatively use the online ‘live chat’ facility or e-mail service, available via the Child Maintenance Options website at:
	www.cmoptions.org

Disadvantaged: EU Grants and Loans

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reasons the UK Government voted against the establishment of a Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived.

Esther McVey: The UK did not refuse any money, it simply voted against adopting the regulation establishing the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived on the basis that we think member states, and not the European Union, should decide how the money is spent. This was in line with the reasoned opinions adopted by both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

Employment and Support Allowance

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the time between applications for employment and support allowance and an assessment appointment for people who applied in (a) September 2013, (b) October 2013, (c) November 2013, (d) December 2013, (e) January 2014, (f) February 2014, (g) March 2014 and (h) April 2014 in (i) Glasgow North West constituency, (ii) Glasgow, (iii) Scotland and (iv) the UK;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of employment and support allowance applicants who have been waiting to be given an assessment appointment for more than (a) three, (b) four, (c) five, (d) six and (e) seven months.

Michael Penning: The information requested is not available.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that Index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national wellbeing as defined in that Index since 2010.

Michael Penning: The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is measuring National Well-being, not as an index but through a framework of 41 indicators which capture social progress around important aspects of life for individuals, communities and the nation. The statistics are experimental and as such we should not expect to have examples of major policies that have been heavily influenced by the well-being data at this stage.
	Evidence provided to the Environmental Audit Committee for its Inquiry into Well-being can be found at:
	http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/environmental-audit-committee/inquiries/parliament-2010/well-being/

Housing Benefit: Wales

Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many local authorities in Wales applied for additional financial assistance to cover discretionary housing payments in 2013-14; and what assistance such local authorities received.

Steve Webb: The three local authorities in Wales that applied for additional discretionary housing payments from the additional £20 million reserve fund provided by the Government are detailed on the following table:
	
		
			 Local authority Amount awarded (£) 
			 Caerphilly 63,000 
			 Cardiff 150,000 
			 Conwy 25,000 
		
	
	This information was published on 24 March 2014 in the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) subsidy circular S3/2014. Please find attached a link where the information can be found:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/295291/s3-2014.pdf

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether a jobcentre is permitted to require a jobseeker to attend a voluntary employment support project in receipt of no statutory funding without the consent of that project.

Esther McVey: The role of the Jobcentre Plus work coach is to provide support and advise claimants of the best opportunities available to help them secure employment.
	Jobcentre Plus can issue a jobseeker's direction to require JSA claimants to undertake activity they judge will help them back to work. However, before doing so, the Jobcentre Plus work coach will take into account the claimant's individual circumstances, as well as determining that the activity being required will help improve their employment prospects and they can reasonably be expected to undertake it.

Maternity Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many women received statutory maternity pay for how long in the latest period for which figures are available.

Steve Webb: The total number of women that started receiving Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) in 2011-12 was 355,000 and the average number receiving SMP at any point in time during the year was 273,000. These figures are estimated based on a 1% sample of national insurance records.
	This figure is for Great Britain only. Northern Ireland figures are the responsibility of the Department for Social Development in Northern Ireland.
	The duration of SMP claims cannot be estimated from national insurance records, as these only contain information on the amount of SMP paid across the year and not when SMP claims begin and end. However the Department publishes the Maternity and Paternity Rights and Women Returners Survey, which provides an indication of SMP claim durations, with the latest publication being in 2009-10. In 2008, about half of women eligible for SMP took maternity pay for the statutory number of weeks (39 weeks). Findings can be accessed at the link below (Section 3.3 and Table 3.5 contain information on SMP durations):
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/maternity-and-paternity-rights-and-women-returners-survey-200910-rr777
	Notes:
	1. The number of SMP receipts is shown in DWP’s expenditure tables found on the gov.uk website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/benefit-expenditure-tables
	2. Estimates of the number of women receiving SMP are based on the Lifetime Labour Market Database (L2) which is a 1% sample of national insurance records.
	3. Estimates are subject to change due to further information becoming available through the national insurance recording system.

Maternity Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost to the Exchequer was of statutory maternity pay in the last year for which figures are available.

Steve Webb: The amount of statutory maternity pay in the last year for which figures are available was £2,303 million for 2012-13 (nominal terms). Figures are subject to change due to more information becoming available through employers’ returns to HM Revenue and Customs.
	The figure is for Great Britain only. Northern Ireland figures are the responsibility of the Department for Social Development in Northern Ireland.
	Source:
	Original source is expenditure data from employer returns to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and is the amount recovered by employers rather than the amount received by claimants. This information is shown in DWP’s expenditure tables found on the Gov.uk website at
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/benefit-expenditure-tables

Personal Independence Payment

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people he expects to (a) be assessed for and (b) receive decisions on applications for personal independence payments in each of the next five years.

Michael Penning: The information is in the table:
	
		
			 Thousand 
			  2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 
			 PIP new claims 386 378 381 381 387 
			 PIP reassessed claims 191 401 754 369 34 
			 Total PIP claims 577 779 1135 750 421 
			       
			 PIP new claims decisions 600 373 379 387 380 
			 PIP reassessed claims decisions 152 337 746 490 34 
			 Total PIP decisions 752 710 1124 877 414 
			 Notes: 1. Decisions in a year will be for claims in that year and the previous year. 2. Reassessed claims are claims from individuals currently on DLA who have been invited to apply for PIP, Source: Budget 14 forecasts

Personal Independence Payment: North East

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of personal independence payments claims not made under the special rules for terminally ill people, by claimants resident in (a) Washington and Sunderland West constituency, (b) the Sunderland local authority area and (c) the North East region were successful in each month for which records are available;
	(2)  how many personal independence payments claims, not under the special rules for terminally ill people, have been made by residents of (a) Washington and Sunderland West constituency, (b) the Sunderland local authority area and (c) the North East region in each month for which records are available.

Michael Penning: Information on claims to personal independence payment is available only at national level. Provisional data was published on 5 June 2014 and is available here:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/personal-independence-payment-official-statistics-june-2014
	Information on the numbers of successful new claimants is available across a range of geographical breakdowns, including parliamentary constituency. The information is published and can be found at:
	https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk
	Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:
	https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Stat-Xplore_User_Guide.htm

Separated People: Finance

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when each of the new projects chosen in the second round of competition for funding from the Help and Support for Separated Families Innovation Fund will commence.

Steve Webb: All projects successful during the second round of the Innovation Fund procurement exercise became operational during or before April 2014.

Separated People: Finance

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what proportion of the parents who have so far participated in the first round of Help and Support for Separated Families Innovation Fund projects have been (a) parents with main care of a child or children and (b) non-resident parents;
	(2)  how many people have participated in each of the seven Help and Support for Separated Families Innovation Fund projects to date.

Steve Webb: Round one projects all aim to reach different numbers of parents depending on their need, the project’s location, resources available and the type of service being offered. One of these round one projects initially works with non-resident parents only, whereas the other projects engage a lead parent which could be either the parent with care or the non-resident parent. Most projects then aim to work with both parents during the intervention but this is not always possible.
	As far as it is possible, the actual number of parents participating, and whether they are a parent with care or a non-resident parent, are data that is currently being collected by our round one projects. This forms part of the data that will be collated, analysed and assessed by our independent evaluator. It is our intention that this will be published alongside final evaluation results when completed.

Separated People: Finance

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been awarded to each of the 10 projects that received funding from Help and Support for Separated Families Innovation Fund in the second round of bidding in December 2013.

Steve Webb: The following table provides the original agreed contract value for each of the contracts awarded in the second procurement round of the Innovation Fund. The contract value is the possible highest amount payable as this is partly dependent on performance.
	
		
			  £ 
			 Children 1st 451,964 
			 Family Lives 306,234 
			 National Association of Child Contact Centres (NACCC) 382,081 
			 Pinnacle People 242,240 
			 Mediation Now 86,448 
			 Sills & Betteridge 720,742 
		
	
	
		
			 Tavistock Centre for Couple Relationships (TCCR) 398,762 
			 Headland Future (now Changing Futures) 322,795 
			 Family Matters Mediate 165,856 
			 National Family 480,354

Social Security Benefits

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of claimants of (a) jobseeker's allowance and (b) employment and support allowance on Help to Work who will enter employment within (i) six months and (ii) 12 months;
	(2)  what assumptions about numbers returning to work underpin the benefit cost savings forecast for Help to Work in the autumn statement; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The information requested is not available.

Social Security Benefits: Fraud

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional costs and savings he expects from the introduction of the Single Fraud Investigation Service in each of the years from 2012 to 2018.

Esther McVey: The SFIS Business Case covers the period 2011-12 to 2021-22, and the current figures indicate that the cost of implementing SFIS is £73 million with a saving expected around £507 million. As the project progresses the business case will be reviewed and where necessary updated.

Social Security Benefits: Fraud

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress he has made on Single Fraud Investigation Service; what plans he has for its roll out; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: Progress has been made with regard to the implementation of the Single Fraud Investigation Service and this will commence from 1 July 2014.

Universal Credit

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to ensure that his Department is able to cross-check data on housing costs within the universal credit programme in order to counter fraud.

Esther McVey: The universal credit system is already protected against fraud and error and security experts are involved at each stage of UC design. It is not in the public interest to disclose detailed plans or processes.

Universal Credit

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many full-time equivalent staff are employed by his Department to work exclusively on universal credit in (a) total, (b) communications, (c) IT development and (d) project delivery.

Esther McVey: Current resourcing data shows the full time equivalent staff employed to work exclusively on universal credit. In total this is (a) 535.8 comprising of (b) 21 in communications (c) 80.8 in IT Development and (d) 434 in project delivery.
	These figures exclude contractors.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff will be employed in the specialist housing teams that will be established in universal credit centres.

Esther McVey: A team exists to support current live service. This will expand as the rollout continues.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Asylum: Syria

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department to how many Syrian refugees the UK has offered asylum.

James Brokenshire: For the purposes of answering this question latest published figures have been provided since the start of the armed conflict in Syria in April 2011.
	Between April 2011 and March 2014, 2,649 Syrians and their dependants were granted asylum in the UK at initial decision. In the same period 45 Syrians and their dependants were granted Humanitarian Protection.
	The Home Office publishes statistics on grants of asylum and humanitarian protection at initial decision to main applicants and dependants in Tables as_02 and as_02_q (Asylum data tables Volume 1) within the Immigration Statistics release. A copy of the latest release, Immigration Statistics January—March 2014 is available from:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/home-office/series/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release
	and will be placed in the Library of the House.
	Not all asylum seekers are deemed to be refugees and not all refugees claim asylum. Refugee status is conferred following a grant of asylum.

Asylum: Uganda

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the UK Border Agency's handling of the case of Aidah Asaba.

James Brokenshire: The general policy of the Home Office is not to disclose personal information about another person. This is because we have obligations under the Data Protection Act and in law generally to protect this information.
	The UK has a proud history of granting asylum to those who need our protection and we consider every claim for asylum on its individual merits.
	We believe that those with no right to be in the UK should return to their home country and we will help those who wish to leave voluntarily. However, when they refuse to do so we will take steps to enforce their removal at the earliest opportunity.

Entry Clearances

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the change in waiting times for an initial decision for Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa applications in the last year; what the average waiting time is for an initial decision for a Tier 1 application; and what assessment she has made of the economic effect of the time taken for such decisions on economic growth.

James Brokenshire: The average waiting time for a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) customer in the financial year 2013-14 was 125 calendar days. The number of days taken to process applications dropped by 50 days over the course of the financial year and processing times continue to decrease.
	A record number of applications were decided in the financial year 2013-14, and there is nothing to suggest that processing times are deterring entrepreneurs from applying.
	
		
			 Month despatched Average calendar days between application raised date and despatch date 
			 April 2013 131 
			 May 2013 148 
			 June 2013 142 
			 July 2013 129 
			 August 2013 134 
			 September 2013 126 
			 October 2013 96 
			 November 2013 108 
			 December 2013 114 
			 January 2014 141 
			 February 2014 97 
			 March 2014 81 
			 Overall Average/Total Cases 125

Entry Clearances: Commonwealth

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many work visas were issued to people from Commonwealth countries in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

James Brokenshire: The information requested is given in the following table.
	
		
			 Work-related UK entry clearance visas issued 2010 to 2013: current Commonwealth member state nationalities 
			  Number 
			 2010 105,146 
			 2011 95,625 
			 2012 90,567 
			 2013 96,593 
			 Note: Includes dependants. Data are based on nationalities granted work-related visas corresponding to the current Commonwealth Members listed at: http://thecommonwealth.org/member-countries Source: Table be06_q_w (Before Entry tables volume 3), Immigration Statistics January to March 2014 
		
	
	The latest Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas granted (by category and by individual nationality) are published in the quarterly Immigration Statistics release, which is available from the Library of the House and on the Department’s website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

Human Trafficking

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to prevent modern slavery.

Karen Bradley: The Government is determined to lead the global fight against modern slavery, and have introduced the Modern Slavery Bill to help us do so. The Bill aims to give law enforcement the tools to stamp out modern slavery and to enhance protection for victims. The Bill was published on 10 June 2014.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she intends to reply to the letter to her dated 24 April 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr Michael Adebayo Johnson.

James Brokenshire: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 2 June 2014.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she intends to reply to the letter to her dated 22 April 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr A Mehmood.

James Brokenshire: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 15 May 2014.

Surveillance: Aircraft

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what role her Department's Centre for Applied Science and Technology has in (a) the trial of the Aeryon Skyranger drone around Gatwick airport and (b) the trial or use of any other surveillance aircraft operated by Government Departments, agents or public bodies in the UK.

Karen Bradley: CAST has no direct role in the Gatwick trial, but does liaise with the trial team in order to learn from their experience.
	Trials conducted by other Departments and their agencies are matters for the respective Departments.

TREASURY

Aggregates Levy: Northern Ireland

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress he has made on reinstating the Northern Ireland Aggregates Levy Credit Scheme.

Nicky Morgan: In January and February of this year, the government received two sets of follow up questions from the European Commission as part of their formal investigation into the Aggregates Levy Credit Scheme. Treasury officials worked closely with members of the industry and the authorities in Northern Ireland and have submitted further evidence in response to the questions posed.
	While a new relief scheme cannot be considered until the investigation concludes, the Government remains fully committed to reinstating an aggregates levy credit scheme in Northern Ireland.

Day Care: North West

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the number of families that would be eligible for support for child care costs under the provisions of the Childcare Payments Bill in (a) the North West, (b) Lancashire and (c) Pendle constituency.

Nicky Morgan: The information requested is not available.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national wellbeing as defined in that index since 2010.

Nicky Morgan: As the Prime Minister has said:
	“we'll start measuring our progress as a country not just by how our economy is growing, but by our quality of life.”
	The National Wellbeing Index and Measures of Wellbeing provides a rich contribution to the debate about the health and happiness of the people of the United Kingdom.
	These are relatively new statistical series, meaning that the evidence base on wellbeing, and the implications for policy making, are still being developed. The ONS Wellbeing statistics released on the 4 June made a helpful contribution to this debate. They revealed, for example, that those households that receive more of their income from benefits are more likely to have lower life satisfaction. This Government has overseen record employment levels and is reforming the benefit system so that it always pays to work and people are not trapped in a life on benefits.

Investment

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the levels of (a) public sector investment, (b) private sector investment, (c) investment in intangibles and (d) other investment was in each G7 country in each of the last 10 years.

Nicky Morgan: Gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) is an internationally standardised measure that captures whole economy investment, covering business, government and residential investment. International data on GFCF is available from the OECD, while data on the UK can be found in the ONS' business investment release;
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/bus-invest/business-investment/index.html
	Detailed internationally comparable data on investment are not readily available. Some countries also collect data on the shares of GFCF carried out by different institutional sectors, especially that conducted by general government; this data can be obtained from the OECD.
	While some forms of intangible investment are captured in the standard national accounts measure of investment (most notably software), a large range of intangible assets are not, including research and development, advertising, organisational know-how and training. The most comprehensive set of internationally comparable estimates are produced by
	www.intan-invest.net
	These are produced on a market-sector basis and are therefore not directly comparable with the OECD statistics referenced above, which cover both market and non-market activity.
	It should be noted that a range of forthcoming changes to national accounting rules will affect cross-country estimates of GFCF and GDP. The most relevant of these for estimates of GFCF are the inclusion of spending on research and development and weapons systems. Further details can be found on the ONS website, at the following address:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/development-programmes/esa2010/index.html

Sanitary Protection: VAT

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what consideration he has given to changing the five per cent VAT rate applied to female sanitary products;
	(2)  for what reason HM Revenue and Customs considers female sanitary products non-essential for tax purposes; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  if he will lower the VAT rate applied to female sanitary products.

David Gauke: A reduced rate of VAT of 5% currently applies to female sanitary products. This has been in place since 2001 and is the lowest rate possible under EU law.
	The application of VAT in the EU, including rates and flexibilities afforded to member states in this regard, is governed by EU law. The Government cannot introduce a new zero rate as this would require a change to EU VAT legislation, which would require a proposal from the European Commission and the unanimous agreement of all 28 member states.

Taxation: Self-assessment

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 6 May 2014, Official Report, columns 113-14W, on taxation, how much is owed in penalties and interest for failure to meet the deadline set for self-assessment returns in the year ending 31 March 2014.

David Gauke: This information is available only at a disproportionate cost.

Travel: Insurance

Jim Shannon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to encourage insurance companies to set travel insurance premiums for the elderly based on their state of health rather than their age.

Andrea Leadsom: Insurers take into account a range of different factors when considering risk and decisions concerning the pricing of insurance products are a commercial matter for individual insurers. The Government does not seek to intervene in these decisions.
	The insurance industry recognises that older people can face difficulties finding appropriate travel insurance and in 2012 signed an agreement, endorsed by the Government, to re-direct older customers to an alternative insurer or to a specialist insurance broker where they cannot provide insurance themselves.

Working Tax Credit: Bolton

David Crausby: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much has been paid through working tax credits to people in Bolton North East constituency in each of the last three years.

David Gauke: The information is as follows:
	
		
			 Table 1: Bolton North East constituency working tax credit entitlement 
			 Tax year Total WTC entitlement (£ million) 
			 2010-11 19 
			 2011-12 18 
			 2012-13 17 
		
	
	These figures have been rounded to the nearest £ million.

EDUCATION

Academies

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what evidence his Department holds or has assessed on the effects of conversion to academy status on the test results of children in primary schools.

Michael Gove: In 2013, the percentage of pupils in converter academies that achieved level 4 or above in reading, writing (teacher assessment) and mathematics was 81%.1 This was an improvement of one percentage point from 2012, and compares with 76% of pupils that achieved the same threshold in local authority maintained mainstream schools. Furthermore, the percentage of pupils in converter academies that exceeded this threshold was 25%, compared with 21% in local authority maintained mainstream schools.
	1 Table 5, National Tables, SFR51/2013:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-assessments-at-key-stage-2-2012-to-2013

Children: Social Services

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps his Department takes to ensure that third party organisations delegated to undertake children's social care functions of local authorities are of an appropriate standard.

Michael Gove: The Government’s recent consultation seeks to enable local authorities to delegate children’s social care functions to broaden the range of approaches available to secure the best outcomes for children in their area. The proposals do not remove responsibilities from local authorities for ensuring their statutory obligations on child protection and children’s social care are met, and it remains local authorities’ responsibility to ensure the quality of that provision.
	Delegated social care function arrangements will continue to be inspected by Ofsted, in the same way as directly delivered local authority social care functions, as part of its local authority inspection framework. In addition, regulations currently govern the fitness of third party providers and require their registration with Ofsted.

Children: Social Services

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether he plans to exempt any functions from his proposals to allow further delegation of children's social care functions.

Michael Gove: Part 1 of the Children and Young Person’s Act 2008 currently allows local authorities to delegate social care functions relating to children in care and care leavers. The legislation precludes delegation of independent reviewing officer functions, and of adoption functions, unless the other party to the arrangement is a registered adoption society.
	The Government’s proposals would not alter those exemptions, but seek to enable local authorities to delegate a wider range of social services functions (if they so wish), to broaden the range of approaches available to secure the best outcomes for children in their area. The recent consultation on the proposals closed on 30 May and responses are being considered.

Children: Social Services

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the effects of proposals for further delegation of children's social care functions on the implementation of the recommendations of the Munro Review of child protection.

Michael Gove: The Government is considering the outcome of its consultation on proposals to enable local authorities to delegate children’s social care functions to third parties, to help broaden the range of approaches available to secure the best outcomes for children in their area. The proposals place no obligations on local authorities and do not remove their responsibility for ensuring their statutory obligations on child protection and children’s social care are met.

Dominic Cummings

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the (a) dates and times and (b) purpose of all visits to his Department by Dominic Cummings have been since Mr Cummings resigned his post as a special adviser.

Elizabeth Truss: This information is not held. Mr Cummings is no longer employed by the Department for Education.

Free School Meals: Nuneaton

Marcus Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children in schools in Nuneaton will receive free school meals from 2014-15.

David Laws: The information requested is not available. Receipt of a free school meal is dependent upon eligible parents or pupils making an application, and it is not possible to predict how many will do so.
	We do, however, recognise that 631 pupils in reception, year 1 and 2 were known to be eligible for and claiming free school meals in Nuneaton constituency in January 2014. This was 18.7% of all pupils in those year groups. With the introduction of universal infant free school meals in September 2014, all children in reception, year 1 and year 2 will be eligible for a free school lunch.

GCSE

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the answer of 16 January 2014, Official Report, column 656W, what change there has been in the proportion of pupils at the end of key stage 4 achieving five or more GCSEs or equivalent at grades A*-C including English and maths in those (a) schools and (b) academies that have established a sixth form since September 2011.

David Laws: Key stage 4 results for individual schools, including academies, are published online in Performance Tables.1 A copy of the list of schools and academies that established a sixth form since 2011, with their current details, has been placed in the House Library.
	1 Available at:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/performance/

Sixth-Form Education: Student Numbers

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the answer of 14 May 2014, Official Report, column 637W, on sixth-form education: student numbers, 
	(1)  how the approximate total net cost of unfilled student places in school sixth-forms, academy sixth-forms and 16 to 19 free schools was calculated;
	(2)  what these costs were per student.

Matthew Hancock: The net cost of unfilled places referred to in my previous answer was based on the funding per student for each individual institution and the number of students recruited in that institution above or below the allocated number as appropriate. This figure was then adjusted to take into the account the sixth-form element of funds recovered by the Education Funding Agency from those academies which are funded on the basis of estimated pupil numbers but which educated fewer pupils than had been provided for in those estimates.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Disabled Facilities Grants

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average waiting time was in each local authority for an assessment for a disabled facilities grant in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not collect this information.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that Index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national wellbeing as defined in that Index since 2010.

Stephen Williams: The Office for National Statistics is measuring National Wellbeing, not as an index but through a framework of 41 indicators that capture social progress around important aspects of life for individuals, communities and the nation. The statistics are experimental at this stage and as such we should not expect to have examples of major policies that have been heavily influenced by the wellbeing data at this stage. The Department for Communities and Local Government aims to create great places to live and work, and give more power to local people to shape what happens in their area. As such, many of the Department's policies are aligned with the wellbeing agenda. Evidence provided to the Environmental Audit Committee for its inquiry into Wellbeing can be found at:
	http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/environmental-audit-committee/inquiries/parliament-2010/well-being/
	Furthermore, the Department is contributing £100,000 per year for three years to the “What Works Centre for Wellbeing”. This centre will be dedicated to understanding what local as well as national governments, voluntary and business partners can do to increase wellbeing, and the research programme will include a 'communities' theme.

Housing: Disability

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many local authorities in the UK maintain a register of accessible or adapted homes; and what guidance his Department issues to local authorities on registers of accessible housing.

Kris Hopkins: The Department does not hold this information.
	The Government recognises the importance of ensuring that people with disabilities are able to access suitable accommodation which meets their needs.
	Accessible housing registers can be useful and we are aware that some councils and social landlords have incorporated such an approach within their lettings scheme.
	The Government believes it is more important that people who require accessible housing are given the right level of priority under a council’s housing allocation scheme, and that councils and social landlords are able to make the best use of affordable housing in their area, including accommodation which is accessible or has been adapted.
	That is why, through the Localism Act, we have retained the statutory reasonable preference requirements which ensure that priority for social housing is given to those who need to move on medical and welfare grounds (including grounds relating to a disability). We have also made sure that council and housing association landlords have the flexibility to use their social housing stock in a way which best meets the needs of individual households and their local area.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to assist homeowners facing problems paying their mortgages and to provide practical advice and support.

Kris Hopkins: The Council of Mortgage Lenders reported 28,900 repossessions in 2013, down from 33,900 in 2012 and the lowest level since 2007. It has revised down its forecasts for 2014 to 28,000. The Government is not complacent, but believes this fall in repossessions is a consequence of improved arrears management by lenders and action the coalition Government has taken to tackle the deficit and keep interest rates down.
	Homeowners struggling with mortgage payments should take action as soon as possible by discussing their situation with their lender or contacting money advice experts such as Citizens Advice, Shelter, StepChange or National Debtline for free and independent advice on taking control of their finances.
	Government support is available in the form of Support for Mortgage Interest, paid as part of DWP benefits to help eligible out-of-work households meet their monthly mortgage interest payments. The Budget in March this year extended the enhancements to the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme (a shortened 13 week waiting period and an increased capital limit of £200,000), until 31 March 2016.
	Within England the Government continues to ensure the provision of free on-the-day legal advice (the Housing Possession Court Duty Scheme) to assist households at possession hearings. We are providing £470 million of funding in the current spending review period to prevent and tackle homelessness and repossessions.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people in receipt of disability living allowance or personal independence payments have received support from the Help to Buy scheme.

Kris Hopkins: This Government is committed to supporting people's aspirations to own their own home. That is why we have introduced schemes such as Help to Buy Equity Loan scheme and Help to Buy: Mortgage Guarantee scheme, which is managed by HM Treasury. We do not collect data on the number of people purchasing a home using either of the Help to Buy schemes who are in receipt of disability living allowance or personal independence payments.

Mortgages: Huntingdon

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what the average age of buyers using the Government’s Help to Buy scheme was in Huntingdon constituency;
	(2)  how many applications have been made (a) successfully and (b) unsuccessfully under the first stage of the Government's Help to Buy scheme in Huntingdon constituency;
	(3)  what the total value of Government assistance provided under the Help to Buy scheme is in the Huntingdon constituency;
	(4)  what the average (a) household income and (b) house property acquisition price was of those buying under the Government's Help to Buy scheme in Huntingdon constituency.

Kris Hopkins: holding answer 9 June2014
	The area of Huntingdonshire district council comprises all the Huntingdon constituency and part of the North West Cambridgeshire constituency. Separate figures for the Huntingdon constituency could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Figures for the numbers of sales under the Help to Buy equity loan scheme as at 30 April 2014 broken down by local authority and postcode sector are available at
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/help-to-buy-equity-loan-scheme-monthly-statistics
	I have also placed a copy of the table in the Library of the House.
	A figure for the average age of buyers in Huntingdonshire is not available because central Government does not collect information on the ages of buyers under the Help to Buy equity loan scheme.
	The average annual total applicant income of the 127 households that had bought a property within the area of Huntingdonshire district council under the Help to Buy equity loan scheme as at 31 March 2014 was £49,181. During this period, the average purchase price of properties bought under the scheme in the same area was £213,573 and the total amount of equity loan payments made by central Government was £5,424,768.
	Central Government does not collect figures on the numbers of applications that have been (a) successful or (b) unsuccessful under the Help to Buy equity loan scheme. A breakdown for Huntingdonshire is therefore not available.
	The Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme is a matter for the Treasury. Their most recent statistics show that the average value of the 23 properties in Huntingdonshire that had been sold under the scheme by 31 March 2014 was £162,228, and that the total value of loans supported by the scheme for these properties was £3,528,682. This information is available from Table 7 at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/help-to-buy-mortgage-guarantee-scheme-quarter1y-statistics-october-2013-to-march-2014

Out of Town Shopping Centres: Northampton

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the reason is for the time taken to make a decision on the Rushden Lakes development; and when he plans to announce that decision.

Nicholas Boles: The Secretary of State issued his decision on this case on 11 June. He has decided to grant planning permission for this development. A copy of the decision letter and the inspector's report has been sent to the hon. Member and to other interested parties, and these documents are available on the GOV.UK website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/planning-applications-called-in-decisions-and-recovered-appeals

Out of Town Shopping Centres: Northampton

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government by what date he plans to announce whether the Rushden Lakes/Skew Bridge planning application has been accepted.

Nicholas Boles: The Secretary of State issued his decision on this case on 11 June. He has decided to grant planning permission for this development. A copy of the decision letter and the inspector's report has been sent to my hon. Friend and to other interested parties, and these documents are available on the GOV.UK website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/planning-applications-called-in-decisions-and-recovered-appeals

Sleeping Rough: North West

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many rough sleepers there were in each local authority in the North West in each year since 2010.

Kris Hopkins: As outlined in the written ministerial statement of 18 September 2012, Official Report, column 32WS, my Department no longer publishes statistics by the former government office regions. National and local authority data on rough sleeping can be found in the Rough Sleeping in England statistical release, which can be found on the Department’s website at
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collectinos/homelessness-statistics#rough-sleeping.
	We are investing £470 million over the current spending review period to help local authorities and voluntary sector partners prevent and tackle homelessness, rough sleeping and repossessions. This includes £20 million to support the roll out of the ‘No Second Night Out’ standard and protect vital front line services. We have also supported the voluntary sector to deliver 'StreetLink' a national rough sleeping hotline, website and app, to connect rough sleepers to local services.
	On 10 June we announced that over £65 million of funding across Whitehall is being offered to councils and other organisations to tackle homelessness around the country and ensure that vulnerable people can access a range of support and lead independent lives.

Social Rented Housing: Foreign Nationals

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people registered for social housing in (a) Liverpool, (b) the North West and (c) England are non-UK nationals.

Kris Hopkins: holding answer 9 June 2014
	Information about the nationality of households on local authority waiting lists is not collected centrally. Last December we published statutory guidance for local authorities to ensure that-with the exception of service personnel-only those with a well-established local residency and local association qualify for social housing. The guidance also encourages local authorities to consider how accurate and anonymised information on waiting list applicants and lettings outcomes could be routinely published, to strengthen public confidence in the fairness of their allocation scheme.
	Information on social housing lettings is collected by the Department through the Continuous Recording of Lettings (CORE). In 2012-13, 92% of all new social housing (general and supported, social and affordable rents) lettings were to households where the lead tenant was a UK national. In Liverpool this was 91%. National data is published annually
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/social-housing-lettings-in-england-april-2012-to-march-2013
	Ministers have been very clear that local authorities should ensure they have up-to-date information about prospective tenants' nationality and immigration status, in order to ascertain their eligibility for social housing.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Developing Countries: Education

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to ensure all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes by 2030 in the Open Working Group negotiations on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Justine Greening: The UK supports a target to ensure all girls and boys complete primary and secondary education with relevant learning outcomes in the post-2015 sustainable development framework. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.
	The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will however be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Developing Countries: Health Services

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to achieve universal health coverage, including financial risk protection, with particular attention to the most marginalised and people in vulnerable situations in the Open Working Group negotiations on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Justine Greening: The UK supports the inclusion of ensuring universal health coverage as a target under an outcome-focused health goal. By definition, universal health coverage includes financial risk protection. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.
	The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will however be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Developing Countries: Housing

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to ensure universal access to adequate and affordable housing and basic services for all, and eliminate slum-like conditions everywhere by 2030 in the Open Working Group negotiations on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Justine Greening: The UK supports the proposed language of the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June:
	“to ensure universal access to adequate and affordable housing and basic services for all, and eliminate slum-like conditions everywhere,”
	by 2030.
	The final goals and targets in the post-2015 development framework will be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Developing Countries: Working Conditions

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to end child labour by 2030 and protect the rights of and ensure safe and secure working environments for all workers, including migrant workers and those in precarious employment in Open Working Group negotiations on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Justine Greening: The UK supports ending child labour and safe and secure working environments for all workers. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.
	The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will however be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Developing Countries: Young People

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to halve the number of young people not in employment, education or training by 2020 in the Open Working Group negotiations on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Justine Greening: The UK supports a post-2015 target on employment. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.
	The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will however be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Palestinians

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid her Department has given to the Palestinian Authority in each of the last five years.

Alan Duncan: Information on the amounts of direct financial assistance provided by the UK to the Palestinian Authority over the last five years can be found on the DFID Development Tracker website at the following links:
	http://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-202564/
	http://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-113709/

Palestinians

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what arrangements are in place to monitor the use of funds given to the Palestinian Authority.

Alan Duncan: UK direct financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority is channelled through the World Bank Palestinian Reform and Development Plan Trust Fund and is used to pay the salaries of civil servants from an approved list. The list of individuals is systematically screened and checked against international (including Israeli) and ad hoc sanctions lists. The whole process is independently audited which ensures we know exactly where and how our money is being spent.

Palestinians

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  whether any UK aid given to the Palestinian Authority has been distributed to prisoners convicted of terrorism-related activities in the last five years;
	(2)  whether any UK aid given to the Palestinian Authority has been distributed to individuals released from prison after serving sentences for terrorism-related activities.

Alan Duncan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I provided to my hon. Friend the Member for Aberconwy (Guto Bebb) on 31 March 2014, Official Report, column 461W.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Colombia

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he and his Department have received regarding alleged fabrication of charges by the Colombian state against David Flórez, spokesperson for the Patriotic March movement.

Hugo Swire: My Department has not received any representations regarding alleged fabrication of charges by the Colombian state against David Florez.

Colombia

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to his Colombian counterpart about reports that agents acting on behalf of the Colombian government are bringing trumped-up charges against leading members of the Patriotic March movement.

Hugo Swire: My Department has not received any evidence regarding alleged trumped-up charges by agents acting on behalf of the Colombian Government against leading members of the Patriotic March movement.

Gibraltar and Spain

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what representations he has made to the European Commission in respect of petitions from the Government of Gibraltar for a representative to monitor the border crossing;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the effect of delays on the border from British Gibraltar territory into Spain on vehicles crossing that border.

David Lidington: The delays imposed by the Spanish authorities at the border with Gibraltar continue to have a significant impact, resulting in significant changes in behaviour at the border: visitor arrivals in Gibraltar are down and vehicle traffic has fallen. The Government is concerned about the impact that border delays are having on businesses in both Spain and Gibraltar.
	Since the beginning of the disruption last summer, the Government has raised this issue regularly with the European Commission. We recently sent detailed information on the delays, supplied by Her Majesty's Government of Gibraltar, to the Director General for Home Affairs, together with an update on the steps taken by Her Majesty's Government of Gibraltar to address the recommendations made to them by the Commission. Ministers have also been in direct contact with the Commission, including the Commissioner for Home Affairs. In our conversations we stressed the need for the Commission to make follow-up visits to monitor the continuing delays. We continue to request that the Commission urge Spain to act on their recommendations and return border checks to reasonable and proportionate levels.

Iran

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to his Iranian counterpart on that country's material and financial support for terror organisations. [R]

Hugh Robertson: We have serious concerns about Iran's support for a number of militant groups in the Middle East, including Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), the military wing of Hamas, and Shia militia groups, including in Iraq. This support undermines prospects for peace and stability in the Middle East. We have raised our concerns about such activity during our expanding bilateral engagement with Iran, and will continue to do so.

Palestinians

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of recent reports that Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal said that his organisation will not renounce violence or recognise Israel.

Hugh Robertson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 10 June 2014, Official Report, column 91W.

Sri Lanka

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which (a) Sri Lankan Government representatives and (b) Sri Lankan non-governmental organisations and civil society organisations (i) were invited to and (ii) attended the Global summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict.

Hugo Swire: The Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict that the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs is co-hosting with the Special Envoy of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees from 10-13 June 2014 will turn the political commitments contained in the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict into practical action. All governments that have endorsed the declaration have been invited. We have invited the Sri Lankan high commissioner to London to attend as an observer, as Sri Lanka has not yet endorsed the Declaration. We have invited a range of Sri Lankan civil society representatives and hope that their expertise of the situation on the ground will contribute to the discussion of the issues at hand.

Transcaucasus

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has held with the Russian government on the right to self-determination of people in the North Caucasus.

David Lidington: I have not specifically discussed the right to self-determination of people in the North Caucasus with the Russian Government. However, this Government regularly raises concerns about the human rights situation in Russia with the Russian Government. Concerns about the human rights situation in the North Caucasus were included in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s 2013 Annual Human Rights Report.

HEALTH

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has (a) conducted and (b) evaluated into the circumstances in which a typical abortion is performed on the grounds that it is necessary to prevent the physical or mental health of any existing children of the family of the pregnant woman; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: No research has been commissioned by the Department. It is for two doctors, in the light of their clinical opinion of the circumstances of the pregnant woman's individual case, to form an opinion in good faith that one and the same of the lawful grounds in the Abortion Act are met.

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women (a) of each age group, (b) in each health authority area and (c) of each type of complication and cause of death died following health complications after abortion procedures in (i) 2012, (ii) 2013 and (iii) 2014 to date.

Jane Ellison: In 2012, no deaths were recorded on Abortion Notification form HSA4 submitted to the chief medical officers of England and Wales. No data have been published by the Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Death for the years requested but will be available in due course.

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women (a) of each age group, (b) in each health authority area and (c) suffering from each type of complication suffered health complications following abortion procedures in (i) 2012, (ii) 2013 and (iii) 2014 to date.

Jane Ellison: The following tables show categories of information collected on form HSA4 about complications of abortion up to time of discharge. The categories are headed 'none', 'haemorrhage', 'uterine perforation', 'sepsis', and ‘other’. Health authority data is not available. Data were analysed by local authority and grouped into regions to protect patient confidentiality. The data is for 2012 only; 2013 and 2014 data has not been published yet.
	
		
			 Abortions with complications by age, residents of England and Wales, 2012 
			 Age Number 
			 Under 20 35 
			 20 to 24 73 
			 25 to 29 72 
			 30 to 34 57 
			 35 and over 41 
			   
			 Total 278 
		
	
	
		
			 Abortions with complications by region, residents of England and Wales, 2012 
			 Region Number 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 30 
			 North West 32 
			 North East 12 
			 West Midlands 25 
			 East 36 
			 London 48 
			 South East 34 
			 South West 22 
			 Wales 17 
			   
			 Total 278 
		
	
	
		
			 Total abortions by complication, residents of England and Wales, 2012 
			 Complication1 Number 
			 Haemorrhage 216 
		
	
	
		
			 Uterine perforation 22 
			 Sepsis 40 
			 Other 0 
			   
			 Total 278 
			 1 Complications are those reported up to the time of discharge.

Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortions were performed for foetal abnormality in each of the last five years which were reported to a foetal abnormality register but were not notified through the submission of an HSA4 abortion notification form to the Chief Medical Officer.

Jane Ellison: Results from a matching exercise undertaken on the 2011 and 2012 data between the abortion notification forms and NDSCR records were published on 23 May 2014 entitled ‘Matching Department of Health abortion notifications and data from the National Down’s Syndrome Cytogenetic Register and recommendations for improving notification compliance’. No matching exercise was undertaken for the years 2008, 2009 and 2010. A copy of the report has been placed in the Library. It is also available at:
	www.gov.uk/government/publications/under-reporting-of-abortions-for-fetal-abnormalities

Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortions were performed beyond the 24 week limit where feticide was declined in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: Information on whether feticide was declined is not collected on the abortion notification form HSA4.

Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he intends to take to endure that literature distributed by abortion clinics informing women about adoption as an alternative to abortion under the new Revised Standard Operating Procedures for the Approval of Independent Places for the Termination of Pregnancy is of the highest possible quality and objectivity.

Jane Ellison: The updated Required Standard Operating Procedures set out that:
	“women must be given impartial, accurate and evidence based information (verbal and written) delivered neutrally”
	covering a range of issues including adoption. Part of the Care Quality Commission's (CQC) inspection methodology is to look for open and honest communication from a service provider about the nature of the services it provides. The CQC's inspectors would ask to see a sample of information that would be provided to service users and use this as part of the decision-making process when making a judgment.

Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Revised Standard Operating Procedures for the Approval of Independent Places for the Termination of Pregnancy, what assessment he has made of the possibility that inaccurate diagnoses will follow his Department's decision to allow women to refrain from informing their GP of a prior abortion.

Jane Ellison: Women seeking an abortion have the right to confidentiality and their decision must be respected if they do not want their general practitioner to be informed.

Abortion: Counselling

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what (a) formal and (b) informal discussions officials had with (i) pro-life organisations, (ii) the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, (iii) Marie Stopes International and (iv) pro-choice organisations before the publication of guidance on the provision of non-judgemental counselling; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many staff of each grade are employed in his Department's Sexual Health Policy Team;
	(3)  which Directorate in his Department produced guidance on the provision of non-judgemental counselling; which Directorate has policy responsibility for implementation of this guidance; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: Departmental officials have made a number of visits and have had informal discussions with a number of counselling providers which included pro-life and pro-choice organisations; these are listed as follows.
	Organisations visited or with which contact was made
	Brook Advisory Centre, Brixton
	British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS), Richmond
	Care Confidential, Alternatives Trust, Newham
	City Pregnancy Counselling and Psychotherapy Service, Islington
	Homerton NHS Trust, Hackney
	Hull Sexual and Reproductive Health Care Partnership
	Life Care Centre, Walsall
	Marie Stopes International, Brixton and Bristol
	Norwich Contraception and Sexual Health Clinic
	Plymouth Community Healthcare
	The Government produced guidance on the provision of non-judgmental abortion counselling in ‘A Framework for Sexual Health Improvement in England’(March 2013). The Framework was produced by the sexual health policy team in the Public Health Directorate.
	The Sexual Health Policy team is made up of the following staff at each grade:
	one Senior Civil Servant (who also manages policy areas other than sexual health)
	one Grade 6
	two Grade 7
	one Senior Executive Officer
	one Higher Executive Officer (seven whole time equivalent)
	one Executive Officer

Abortion: Counselling

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Revised Standard Operating Procedures for the Approval of Independent Places for the Termination of Pregnancy, what steps he is taking to ensure that patients seeking abortion counselling are not subject to pressure to agree to the procedure as a result of his Department's requirement that abortion treatment must be delivered within 10 days of the first appointment; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The Required Standard Operating Procedures make clear that women can choose to delay appointments/booked procedures and this should always override issues of timeliness.

Cancer

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce the incidence of patients with cancer of the unknown primary first presenting at accident and emergency.

Jane Ellison: NHS England expects that the treatment and care for patients with Cancer of Unknown Primary reflects patients' needs and preferences and that services are provided taking into account National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.
	Public Health England leads on developing a public health strategy for England which aims to tackle ‘upstream’ factors to reduce risks from cancer caused by tobacco, alcohol and obesity and to promote health through improved diets and exercise promotion. The national health service has a key role to play in supporting local authorities by commissioning smoking cessation services, specialist alcohol services, as well as through raising awareness of lifestyle risks with people who are in contact with NHS services and providing intensive support where needed.
	Alongside supporting Public Health England to increase symptom awareness among the general population, NHS England is also working to increase cancer symptom awareness among health care professionals, and to provide support to general practitioners in early diagnosis.
	In 2013-14 NHS England made £2.3 million available to support improved symptom awareness and early diagnosis. The majority of this funding was provided to strategic clinical networks which have the function of coordinating a more strategic approach to the development of cancer commissioning and provision in England. They also support early diagnosis through delivery of transparent data about performance in outcomes. For example, new indicators on stage of diagnosis of cancer and diagnosis through emergency routes are being introduced as part of the clinical commissioning group (CCG) outcomes indicator set in 2014-15. This will support CCGs to understand how their local communities are performing in relation to cancer outcomes.

Cancer

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to improve the collection and reporting of data relating to the incidence of cancer of the unknown primary.

Jane Ellison: Information has recently been published by Public Health England's National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN) about the routes taken by patients prior to a diagnosis of cancer of unknown primary (CUP), and the links between age and socio-economic deprivation and CUP. These publications increase our understanding of the epidemiology of CUP and allow clinical teams to benchmark their levels of CUP diagnoses.
	A survey of CUP registration and reporting practices in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia was recently conducted by the NCIN and the University of New South Wales. The results, which identified differences in CUP registration practice, are currently being analysed by the NCIN and will be used to develop a better understanding of historic data. The findings can also support and inform future standardisation of national and international registration guidance.
	Preliminary results from the CUP survey will be presented at the Cancer Outcomes Conference-the Power of Information 2014.

Cancer

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the importance of psychological support services for patients suffering from cancer of the unknown primary.

Jane Ellison: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance manual: Improving Supportive and Palliative Care for Adults with Cancer:
	www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/csgspmanual.pdf
	provides a framework for the provision of psychological support in people with cancer—including cancer of unknown primary.
	The NICE clinical guideline for Depression with a chronic physical health problem (CG91) is also a useful resource.
	All patients should have systematic psychological assessment and have access to an appropriate psychological intervention from professionals competent to provide them.

Care Homes: West Sussex

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps he plans to take to implement the recommendations of the Serious Case Review into the private care home sector in West Sussex;
	(2)  what plans he has to reform the Care Quality Commission.

Norman Lamb: The Department has noted the report of the serious case review into deaths at Orchid View care home. The great majority of the report’s recommendations are for local attention and response. However, the Department is taking action to improve the regulation and oversight of care providers and to enhance protection from abuse and neglect.
	The Care Act places care and support law into a single statute for the first time and enshrines the principle of individual well-being as the driving force behind it. It ensures that people will have clearer information and advice to help them navigate the system, and a more diverse, high quality range of support to choose from to meet their needs.
	The Act sets local authorities’ responsibility for protecting adults with care and support needs from abuse or neglect in primary legislation. This is vital to ensure clear accountability, roles and responsibilities for helping and protecting adults with care and support needs who are experiencing, or at risk of, abuse or neglect as a result of those needs. Local authorities are given a lead role in coordinating local safeguarding activity.
	Following the failure of Southern Cross Healthcare, the Government consulted widely on how to address the issues around the financial failure of large care providers. The Care Act establishes the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as the financial regulator of providers which, because of their size, geographical coverage or specialism, could cause difficulty to local authorities in arranging alternative care in such circumstances.
	The CQC will look at the finances of these providers and, where there are significant concerns about financial sustainability, take action to ensure a provider is taking steps to return to financial health. Where that is not possible, the CQC will share all the information it has with relevant local authorities, to help them minimise the negative effects should the provider fail and to ensure a smooth process that provides continuing care to individuals.
	The aim of this new regime is not to prop up failing providers, but to provide reassurance and co-ordinate continuity of care for people affected should a care business fail. The CQC is currently working to establish this new function, which will begin in April 2015 and sit alongside its role to oversee the quality of providers. In the meantime, the Department has a team overseeing the finances of the five largest providers.
	Significant reform is already under way to ensure the CQC is an effective regulator. Chief inspectors have been appointed, for hospitals, adult social care, and general practice. The CQC is putting in place specialist inspection teams, headed by the chief inspectors, to carry out more in-depth inspections that subject providers to greater scrutiny than before.
	Under the leadership of the chief inspectors and, after a phase of testing, since April 2014 all acute national health service trusts inspections have used the new methodology; the inspection reports from this wave were all published by March 2014, three of which produced a shadow rating. The CQC is completing the second wave of inspections and all 13 of the 19 inspection reports already published have a shadow rating. The CQC also began testing its new inspection model in mental health, community services and NHS general practice out of hours services in January 2014 and in adult social care in April 2014.
	Subject to parliamentary agreement, regulations will introduce new fundamental standards as requirements for registration with the CQC. These will allow the CQC to take robust action against providers that do not deliver an acceptable standard of care. The CQC will produce ratings of the quality of care ranging from “outstanding” to “inadequate”, to provide service users with a fuller picture of the quality of care available. The aim is to introduce both sets of regulations in October 2014.

Cervical Cancer

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps his Department is taking to implement the recommendations of the Demos report, Behind the Screen, to increase uptake of cervical screening;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the conclusions of the Demos report, Behind the Screen on (a) the decline in screening rates for all age groups and (b) the costs to both the NHS and individual women of screening uptake levels;
	(3)  what plans his Department has to (a) support cervical Screening Awareness Week and (b) promote awareness by other means of the importance of cervical cancer screening for cervical abnormalities and cancer; and if he will make it his policy to set a target of 85 per cent for screening uptake.

Jane Ellison: We welcome the Demos report, Behind the screen: “Revealing the true cost of cervical cancer...”, which we have discussed in detail with Public Health England (PHE). On the specific recommendations in the report:
	it is NHS Cervical Screening Programme policy that general practitioners should offer 'on the spot' cervical screening tests to women during other appointments, as long as they are overdue. In 2012-13, more than 500,000 were taken without an immediate invitation;
	on awareness campaigns, PHE is looking at a number of other cancers for potential local pilot tests within the Be Clear on Cancer programme, and a decision will be made later in the summer;
	a strategy on using celebrities or religious leaders to improve coverage would need to be tied in with any overall marketing campaign, but previous experience shows that this only has a short-term effect and needs frequent repetition. The publicity around Jade Goody, diagnosis, illness and subsequent death, brought in many under-screened women, but this dissipated within months following Jade's death at the end of March 2009; and
	PHE has funded research on the effects of mother/daughter relationships on uptake of screening and vaccination, including in lower socio-economic groups. PHE would be very happy to discuss this with Demos and Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust.
	We know that for a number of reasons coverage rates among women have fallen slightly over the last decade, as highlighted further in the report, and a considerable amount of work is under way to tackle this decline. The third annual report of our Cancer Outcomes Strategy said that a priority for 2014-15 will be to improve screening uptake among disadvantaged groups. PHE is undertaking analysis on local screening programmes with poor coverage, and will work with them to develop action plans to increase coverage in their local areas.
	Specifically on younger women, the National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment programme has commissioned a £1 million study to determine which interventions are effective at increasing screening uptake among women who are receiving their first invitation from the programme. We also know that coverage rates are lower in certain communities. NHS Cancer Screening Programmes have worked with Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust to host two events looking at challenges to screening uptake among black and minority ethnic communities, and a third event is due to be held in Birmingham in July 2014. NHS Cancer Screening Programmes has also funded an award winning Lesbian and Gay Foundation's Are You Ready for Your Screen Test? campaign targeting lesbian and bisexual women to raise awareness about the need to attend for regular cervical screening tests.
	Regarding costs discussed in the report, we will ensure that the report is sent to colleagues in NHS England who are responsible for commissioning the cervical screening service. The report will also be discussed at the next meeting of the Advisory Committee on Cervical Screening in the autumn.
	Acceptable and achievable standards for cervical screening coverage rates are being discussed as part of the update of the cervical screening service specification attached to the NHS public health functions agreement: Public health functions to be exercised by NHS England (section 7a agreement) for 2015-16.
	We are fully supportive of Cervical Screening Awareness Week (CSA Week) and the work Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust does, who I met recently.
	I wrote to all Members of Parliament on 11 June to draw their attention to CSA Week, update them on national and local screening statistics and ask for their support in promoting take-up of screening. In addition, the Department and PHE promoted CSA Week on social media.

Chlamydia

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people (a) sought chlamydia screening and (b) tested positive in each local authority in 2012-13.

Jane Ellison: The table contains the number of chlamydia tests and diagnoses made in each Upper Tier local authority in England for the most recent year-for which data are available (2012) for 15 to 24-year-olds.
	
		
			 Chlamydia tests and diagnoses made in each upper tier local authority in England 
			 Public Health England centre name Upper local authority name Positive tests Total number of tests 
			 London Barking and Dagenham 601 8,365 
			 London Barnet 561 7,137 
			 London Bexley 373 4,530 
			 London Brent 889 11,782 
			 London Bromley 447 6,855 
			 London Camden 909 14,859 
			 London City of London 8 126 
			 London Croydon 1,233 12,346 
			 London Ealing 521 8,122 
			 London Enfield 450 7,542 
			 London Greenwich 896 12,602 
			 London Hackney 1,090 13,761 
			 London Hammersmith and Fulham 466 5,515 
			 London Haringey 1,297 12,244 
			 London Harrow 324 3,720 
			 London Havering 417 7,606 
			 London Hillingdon 589 11,720 
			 London Hounslow 615 8,693 
			 London Islington 612 7,771 
			 London Kensington and Chelsea 296 4,241 
			 London Kingston upon Thames 409 6,355 
			 London Lambeth 2,460 23,753 
			 London Lewisham 1,536 16,649 
			 London Merton 371 4,945 
			 London Newham 989 13,378 
			 London Redbridge 478 8,442 
			 London Richmond upon Thames 238 4,319 
			 London Southwark 1,409 15,936 
			 London Sutton 391 5,239 
			 London Tower Hamlets 660 11,855 
			 London Waltham Forest 692 10,625 
			 London Wandsworth 977 12,139 
			 London Westminster 435 6,116 
			 South Midlands and Hertfordshire Bedford 652 5,907 
			 South Midlands and Hertfordshire Central Bedfordshire 356 4,979 
			 South Midlands and Hertfordshire Hertfordshire 2,403 33,184 
			 South Midlands and Hertfordshire Luton 380 5,135 
		
	
	
		
			 South Midlands and Hertfordshire Milton Keynes 678 9,023 
			 South Midlands and Hertfordshire Northamptonshire 1,588 20,053 
			 East Midlands Derby 858 8,986 
			 East Midlands Derbyshire 1,726 27,988 
			 East Midlands Leicester 1,058 16,567 
			 East Midlands Leicestershire 1,343 22,696 
			 East Midlands Lincolnshire 1,646 21,741 
			 East Midlands Nottingham 1,909 22,553 
			 East Midlands Nottinghamshire 1,914 18,589 
			 East Midlands Rutland 60 896 
			 Anglia and Essex Cambridgeshire 1,340 26,983 
			 Anglia and Essex Essex 2,128 27,402 
			 Anglia and Essex Norfolk 1,699 20,016 
			 Anglia and Essex Peterborough 588 5,666 
			 Anglia and Essex Southend-on-Sea 361 4,958 
			 Anglia and Essex Suffolk 1,160 18,425 
			 Anglia and Essex Thurrock 313 3,459 
			 West Midlands Birmingham 4,065 47,614 
			 West Midlands Coventry 1,127 13,552 
			 West Midlands Dudley 275 3,911 
			 West Midlands Herefordshire, County of 382 3,810 
			 West Midlands Sandwell 594 5,183 
			 West Midlands Shropshire 450 5,949 
			 West Midlands Solihull 467 6,016 
			 West Midlands Staffordshire 1,717 29,735 
			 West Midlands Stoke-on-Trent 654 11,450 
			 West Midlands Telford and Wrekin 325 5,309 
			 West Midlands Walsall 1,649 21,377 
			 West Midlands Warwickshire 972 11,204 
			 West Midlands Wolverhampton 403 4,167 
			 West Midlands Worcestershire 996 13,168 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Cheshire East 726 10,473 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Cheshire West and Chester 809 10,580 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Halton 444 5,539 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Knowsley 508 6,766 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Liverpool 1,883 23,734 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Sefton 645 7,818 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside St Helens 502 7,481 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Warrington 884 10,045 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Wirral 939 12,662 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire Blackburn with Darwen 467 5,357 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire Blackpool 876 8,040 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire Cumbria 948 11,921 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire Lancashire 3,444 42,137 
			 Greater Manchester Bolton 921 9,393 
			 Greater Manchester Bury 469 4,748 
			 Greater Manchester Manchester 2,160 24,283 
			 Greater Manchester Oldham 581 6,965 
			 Greater Manchester Rochdale 619 6,305 
		
	
	
		
			 Greater Manchester Salford 910 9,949 
			 Greater Manchester Stockport 563 7,055 
			 Greater Manchester Tameside 686 7,795 
			 Greater Manchester Trafford 491 6,622 
			 Greater Manchester Wigan 1,034 10,402 
			 North East County Durham 1,188 22,986 
			 North East Darlington 234 3,486 
			 North East Gateshead 521 6,326 
			 North East Hartlepool 400 5,390 
			 North East Middlesbrough 821 8,555 
			 North East Newcastle upon Tyne 2,027 26,921 
			 North East North Tyneside 598 8,157 
			 North East Northumberland 659 10,699 
			 North East Redcar and Cleveland 525 5,798 
			 North East South Tyneside 655 7,219 
			 North East Stockton-on-Tees 864 9,723 
			 North East Sunderland 723 9,408 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Barnsley 545 6,076 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Bradford 1,100 13,316 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Calderdale 485 4,585 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Doncaster 987 10,431 
			 Yorkshire and Humber East Riding of Yorkshire 289 4,090 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Kingston upon Hull, City of 1,004 13,569 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Kirklees 1,191 11,253 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Leeds 3,276 33,985 
			 Yorkshire and Humber North East Lincolnshire 687 7,774 
			 Yorkshire and Humber North Lincolnshire 271 3,562 
			 Yorkshire and Humber North Yorkshire 743 10,051 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Rotherham 1,067 11,331 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Sheffield 1,794 24,003 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Wakefield 770 9,851 
			 Yorkshire and Humber York 361 4,647 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Bath and North East Somerset 252 4,043 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Bristol, City of 2,210 32,884 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Gloucestershire 1,270 16,095 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire North Somerset 391 4,486 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire South Gloucestershire 233 3,336 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Swindon 611 5,770 
		
	
	
		
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Wiltshire 972 11,031 
			 Devon, Cornwall and Somerset Cornwall 1,329 16,195 
			 Devon, Cornwall and Somerset Devon 1,895 21,499 
			 Devon, Cornwall and Somerset Isles of Scilly <5 43 
			 Devon, Cornwall and Somerset Plymouth 706 7,366 
			 Devon, Cornwall and Somerset Somerset 1,016 13,081 
			 Devon, Cornwall and Somerset Torbay 522 4,186 
			 Wessex Bournemouth 643 9,544 
			 Wessex Dorset 629 10,477 
			 Wessex Hampshire 2,638 42,073 
			 Wessex Isle of Wight 299 4,755 
			 Wessex Poole 245 3,889 
			 Wessex Portsmouth 910 18,460 
			 Wessex Southampton 691 12,518 
			 Kent, Surrey and Sussex Brighton and Hove 1,493 24,387 
			 Kent, Surrey and Sussex East Sussex 996 13,180 
			 Kent, Surrey and Sussex Kent 3016 45,193 
			 Kent, Surrey and Sussex Medway 533 5,632 
			 Kent, Surrey and Sussex Surrey 1,460 20,195 
			 Kent, Surrey and Sussex West Sussex 1,318 14,278 
			 Thames Valley Bracknell Forest 128 1,569 
			 Thames Valley Buckinghamshire 578 6,703 
			 Thames Valley Oxfordshire 1,186 23,873 
			 Thames Valley Reading 854 10,655 
			 Thames Valley Slough 242 2,664 
			 Thames Valley West Berkshire 180 1,863 
			 Thames Valley Windsor and Maidenhead 154 1,798 
			 Thames Valley Wokingham 190 2,200 
			 Notes: 1. Data includes chlamydia tests and diagnoses among people accessing services located in England who are also residents in England. 2. Data represents the number of tests and diagnoses reported, and not the number of people tested or diagnosed. 3. Data presented are based on tests with confirmed positive and negative results only. Tests with equivocal, inhibitory and insufficient results have been excluded as most people with these results are retested.

Dementia

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve standards of NHS care for dementia sufferers.

Norman Lamb: NHS England has an ambition that two thirds of the estimated number of people with dementia should have a diagnosis and access to post diagnostic support by March 2015. We are informed by NHS England that there is a tremendous amount of work being undertaken by clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) across the country to improve diagnosis rates and quality of care for people with dementia. NHS England has found wide variation; with some CCGs having a longer journey to achieve the ambition than others. NHS England is providing a package of support to help CCGs to improve timely diagnosis and post-diagnosis support for people with dementia.
	In addition, the Government’s refreshed Mandate to Health Education England, published on 1 May 2014, stated that a further 250,000 NHS staff will receive Tier 1 training on dementia by March 2015, in addition to the 100,000 NHS staff who received Tier 1 training in 2013-14.

Dementia

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funds his Department has provided for research into cures for dementia since 2012; and what progress has been made on such cures since the launch of the Dementia Challenge.

Norman Lamb: At the G8 dementia summit in December 2013, the G8 countries agreed to work together to tackle and defeat dementia. The declaration, built on the Prime Minister’s Dementia Challenge, announced the G8’s ambition to identify a cure or a disease-modifying therapy by 2025 and to increase collectively and significantly the amount of funding for dementia research.
	Investment in dementia research by the Department’s National Institute for Health Research has increased from £12.6 million in 2009-10 to £24.4 million in 2012-13.

Dementia

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many local authorities have signed up to become dementia friendly since the launch of the Dementia Challenge; and what other progress has been made since that date;
	(2)  what steps his Department is taking to help Malpas to develop a dementia friendly community.

Norman Lamb: The dementia friendly communities recognition process was launched by Alzheimer's Society in September 2013 and 55 communities have already signed up. We have therefore increased our original ambition of 20 communities committed to work to become dementia friendly, as set out in the Prime Minister's Challenge on Dementia, to reach 75 communities by March 2015. In addition, 59 local authorities are members of local Dementia Action Alliances.
	The Department has worked with Alzheimer's Society to develop the recognition process for dementia friendly communities. Malpas has signed up to the recognition process and is receiving support in its work to become dementia friendly. The Department is also working with Alzheimer's Society and the British Standards Institute to develop a code of practice for dementia friendly communities, which will help communities to continue in their work to become dementia friendly.

Dementia

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what resources his Department has allocated to help carers of dementia patients.

Norman Lamb: Carers are central to the Government’s reform of social care and support, with significant improvements in the Care Act which extends carers’ rights to an assessment which will be based on the appearance of a need for support. For the first time, local authorities will be required to meet carers’ eligible needs for support. The Act also creates a new statutory principle to promote an individual’s well-being, including health and emotional well-being, which will apply equally to carers.
	We have provided £400 million to the national health service over four years from 2011 for carers to have breaks from their caring responsibilities. In the 2013 spending review, we announced the £3.8 billion Better Care Fund, which includes £130 million funding for carers’ breaks for 2015-16.

Food Banks

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he or other Ministers of his Department have visited a foodbank in order to assess the contribution of foodbanks to public health and nutrition.

Daniel Poulter: No departmental Ministers have made a visit to a food bank since May 2010 on official departmental business, but this does not preclude visits in their personal capacities or as constituency MPs.

Health Services: Foreign Nationals

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effect on devolved NHS services of changes to the way temporary migrants and visitors access the NHS in England.

Jane Ellison: The intention of the relevant powers in the Immigration Act 2014 is to ensure that temporary migrants and visitors make a fair contribution towards the cost of any national health service healthcare they receive in the United Kingdom. Under the Act, temporary migrants will be required to pay a health surcharge when applying for a visa to reside in the UK for more than six months. The devolved Administrations will receive a proportion of funds received from the surcharge. It will be for the devolved Administrations to decide whether they spend this on health services and whether they amend their health service charging regulations for other visitors to the UK.
	If charges for some primary care services in England are introduced to visitors to the UK, those services will continue to be free of charge to people who are ordinarily resident in the UK. Therefore, residents of the devolved Administrations will continue to be treated on the same basis as an English resident if they access primary care services in England.
	However, introducing charging for visitors may influence behaviour near the borders if visitors from overseas in England choose to travel to the other countries to access primary care services that they would have to pay for in England.
	The proposed new process for registering with the NHS in England is unlikely to affect the healthcare systems in the devolved administrations but it may mean that residents from the devolved Administrations who access NHS care in England are asked more often to demonstrate that they are ordinarily resident in the UK, or otherwise entitled to free NHS care in England.
	We will continue our discussions with colleagues in the devolved Administrations on all of these issues.

Health Services: Foreign Nationals

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the costs of treatment of UK nationals in each other European Economic Area country in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost of treating European Economic Area nationals who received NHS treatment in each region of the UK in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the number of European Economic Area nationals who received NHS treatment in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  how much income health trusts in each region or nation of the UK received for the cost of treating European Economic Area nationals in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14; and if he will make a statement;
	(5)  how much income each NHS trust in each region of England claimed back for the cost of treating European Economic Area nationals in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The following information is not held by the Department:
	income health trusts in each region or nation of the United Kingdom received for the cost of treating European Economic Area (EEA) nationals;
	income each NHS trust in each region of England claimed back for the cost of treating EEA nationals;
	the number of EEA nationals who received NHS treatment;
	the cost of treating EEA nationals who received NHS treatment in each region of the UK.
	Claims to and from EEA countries are managed centrally by the Department on behalf of the whole of the UK. Income claimed from EEA countries is based on both data collected from trusts and arrangements in place with other EEA countries under bilateral agreements.
	The Department does hold information on claims to the UK from other EEA countries for healthcare costs. However, claims to the UK from other EEA countries are not based on nationality-they are based on whether the UK is judged to be responsible for someone’s healthcare costs, for example due to residency in the UK or, for state pensioners, someone with a UK state pension who has retired to a different EEA country. It is therefore not possible to provide a breakdown of costs based on UK nationality.

Health Services: Northern Ireland

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether officials from his Department met their Northern Ireland counterparts in preparation for the EU Informal Health Council in Athens from 28 to 29 April 2014.

Jane Ellison: Regular meetings are arranged between officials from the Department and officials from the devolved Administrations to discuss a range of European health matters. Departmental officials met virtually with their Northern Ireland counterparts in preparation for the Informal Health Council in Athens on 28-29 April 2014, and officials from Northern Ireland contributed to the briefing that was prepared for the Informal Health Council.

Health, Work and Wellbeing Coordinators

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how members of the public can contact their regional Health, Work and Wellbeing coordinator; how much those coordinators are paid; by what body they are paid; and what those coordinators' roles entail.

Jane Ellison: Health, Work and Wellbeing coordinators were jointly funded by the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department of Health. This funding ceased in 2012.
	One of Public Health England’s (PHE) priorities is improving health in the workplace. It has 15 local centres, where responsibility for local co-ordination sits.
	Contact details for PHE’s local centres can be found on the web at:
	www.gov.uk/government/publications/phe-centre-addresses-and-phone-numbers/phe-local-and-regional-contact-details

Health: Screening

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to ensure that local authorities in England pursue continuous improvement in the proportion of their eligible population being (a) offered and (b) taking up NHS health checks.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) has set out a long-term aspiration of achieving an uptake of 75% and encourages areas to offer the NHS Health Check to 20% of the local population each year. In 2014-15, PHE has seta short term ambition of working towards achieving a 66% uptake and offers to 20% of the eligible population.
	PHE is developing an improvement offer, tailored to the needs of local areas, to support local action. PHE will also enable local authorities to overcome common issues that affect offers by actively disseminating learning on information governance and data flows.
	To support improvement in uptake PHE will work to inform the public's understanding of the programme. In recent weeks PHE has launched NHS Health Check content on NHS Choices and is planning to extend this by developing a directory of services for England.
	Research and evaluation on applying behavioural insights to maximise uptake is also taking place. In the coming months PHE will support a network of local authorities to test and disseminate learning on the approaches that maximise uptake.
	The quarterly publication of both offer and uptake data brings transparency to local delivery of the programme. This enables local councillors, Healthwatch and the public to use existing local government mechanisms to scrutinise activity and encourage improvements in both performance and quality.

Hospital Beds

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital day beds were taken because of delayed discharge relating to inaccessible housing available for disabled outpatients in (a) 2013-14 and (b) May 2014.

Norman Lamb: These data are not collected centrally.

Hospital Beds

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department takes to ensure that people do not face delayed discharge from hospital because there is no suitable housing for them to be discharged; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: The Government is committed to supporting the availability of suitable accommodation for those who are being discharged from hospital. It has already taken steps to demonstrate this commitment and is in the process of establishing new opportunities and mechanisms by which this can be done. Examples of these include:
	The recently passed Care Act consolidates duties on local authorities in relation to wellbeing, which specifically include consideration of “suitable living accommodation” as a component of that duty.
	Housing has also been classified as a “health related service” so that housing and suitability of accommodation should be considered in any assessment (including on discharge from hospital).
	The Better Care Fund (BCF), which this Government has established with £3.8 billion funding provides a vehicle to enhance and increase the pace of effective integration between health and social care. Clearly where suitable housing is identified as a barrier to the achievement of key measures within the BCF localities can choose to use funding within the BCF to address this. The opportunity to do this is the inclusion within the BCF of the Disabled Facilities Grant with £220 million being made available within 2015-16.
	The Disabled Facilities Grant is for the provision of adaptations to the homes of disabled people to help them to live independently. Disabled Facilities Grant adaptations include things like stair-lifts, level access showers, winches and ramps. Many people apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant upon exit from hospital because their home is no longer suitable to meet their needs.
	In terms of the Disabled Facilities Grant and the period of the last spending review, £785 million was made available by the Department for Communities and Local Government. They funded an organisation called Foundations, which is the national body for Home Improvement Agencies (HIAs) which help older, disabled and vulnerable people to live independently in their own homes for longer. HIAs deliver around 50% of all Disabled Facilities Grants in England.
	HIAs also provide additional services for older and vulnerable people such as handyperson services, to carry out small jobs around the home also known as minor adaptations, which are things like grab rails, ramps and moving furniture e.g. moving a bed downstairs. Many HIAs provide a bespoke service called “home from hospital” or “hospital discharge” services which adapt people’s homes allowing them to be discharged from hospital more quickly and freeing up hospital beds. £50 million was also made available for handyperson services during the period 2011 to 2015.
	Under the homelessness legislation a household will be considered homeless if a local housing authority determines that it would no longer be reasonable for them to continue to occupy their accommodation. This can clearly apply to an individual's change in circumstances following a stay in hospital. If a local housing authority has reason to believe that an applicant may be homeless or threatened with homelessness then they must make inquiries in order to establish if they are owed a duty.
	If a person is homeless through no fault of their own, eligible for assistance and in priority need then the local housing authority will have a duty to secure suitable accommodation for the household’s occupation. Priority need is defined in legislation to include applicants with children and households that include someone who is vulnerable, for example because of old age, or physical or mental disability, have a priority need for accommodation.
	The Department of Health has supported the resource “Hospital to Home” pathway which we know many areas consider in terms of supporting an individual’s recovery and preventing readmission. The resource contains information, suggestions for action, case studies and checklists for considering older patients’ housing situations in hospital discharge and transfer of care.
	The Shared Commitment for integrated care and support, published in May 2013 and which the Department of Health, the NHS, local government and the voluntary sector were involved in signing up to specifically highlighted the importance of suitable housing being available as part of safe and effective discharge from hospitals.

Hospitals: Bolton

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the five most common causes of admission to hospital have been for (a) children and (b) adults in Bolton since 2010.

Jane Ellison: The information is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Count of Finished Admission Episodes (FAEs)1 for the highest primary diagnoses2 in Bolton Primary Care Trust3, for children (aged 0 to 17-years-old) and adults (over 18-years-old), from 2010-11 to 2012-134 
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			 Age group Diagnosis code Diagnosis description 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 0 to 17 years Z38 Liveborn infants according to place of birth 3,908 4,273 5,365 
			  B34 Viral infection of unspecified site 543 634 911 
			  K02 Dental caries 745 705 497 
			  J06 Acute upper respiratory infections of multiple and unspecified sites 390 362 463 
			  P59 Neonatal jaundice from other and unspecified causes 227 385 451 
			  J03 Acute tonsillitis 469 462 427 
			  R10 Abdominal and pelvic pain 369 406 292 
			   Total admissions 6,651 7,227 8,406 
			       
			 18+ years Z34 Supervision of normal pregnancy 1,620 2,369 2,646 
			  R10 Abdominal and pelvic pain 1,884 1,972 2,128 
			  H35 Other retinal disorders 1,020 1,623 1,839 
			  O26 Maternal care for other conditions predominantly related to pregnancy 1,293 1,462 1,794 
			  R07 Pain in throat and chest 1,636 1,562 1,537 
			  H26 Other cataract 2,210 2,308 1,414 
			   Total admissions 9,663 11,296 11,358 
			 1Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period. 2Primary diagnosis The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. For the purpose of this query, 3-character diagnosis codes were used to calculate the FAEs. There are more than five diagnoses listed for each age group because the top five for each year have been listed. 3PCT of main provider This indicates the PCT area within which the organisation providing treatment was located. 4Assessing growth through time (in-patients) HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, changes in activity may be due to changes in the provision of care. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many operations have been cancelled because of scheduling error in (a) St Albans, (b) Hertfordshire and (c) England since 2005.

Jane Ellison: Information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Table: Cancelled elective operations, 2005-06 to 2013-14 
			  West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust England 
			 2005-06 621 856 60,803 
			 2006-07 929 682 52,005 
			 2007-08 1,081 873 57,382 
			 2008-09 527 965 63,644 
			 2009-10 383 358 62,296 
			 2010-11 314 297 58,295 
			 2011-12 367 220 57,087 
			 2012-13 486 150 63,517 
		
	
	
		
			 2013-14 357 179 64,192 
			 Note: Cancelled elective operations are defined as operations that were cancelled by the hospital for non-clinical reasons on the day the patient was due to arrive in hospital, or after the patient has arrived in hospital, or on the day of the operation or surgery. The data does not distinguish between scheduling errors and other non-clinical reasons for cancellation. Source: Cancelled elective operations. Published quarterly by NHS England at www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/cancelled-elective-operations/

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the current average waiting time is for elective surgery in (a) St Albans constituency, (b) Hertfordshire, (c) the East of England and (d) England.

Jane Ellison: The information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Average (median) waiting time in weeks from referral to admission to hospital for consultant-led elective treatment, March 2014 
			 Area National health service organisation Number of weeks 
			 St Albans NHS Herts Valley Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) 10.0 
			    
			 Hertfordshire NHS Herts Valley CCG 10.0 
			  NHS East and North Hertfordshire CCG 8.6 
			    
			 East of England East Anglia Area Team 8.6 
			  Essex Area Team 10.2 
			  Hertfordshire and the South Midlands Area Team 8.3 
			    
			 England — 8.8 
			 Source: Consultant-led referral to treatment waiting times, commissioner data for admitted patient pathways, March 2014. Published by NHS England at: www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/rtt-data-2013-14/#Mar14

Human Embryo Experiments

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many human embryos have been (a) created for the purposes of experimentation and (b) created for the purposes of extermination and subsequently destroyed in each year since 1991.

Jane Ellison: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has advised that it does not have a central repository of data on the number of embryos experimented on, nor the number of embryos created for research. However, it does hold data on the number of embryos stored for research, and the total number from 1 August 1991 to 30 June 2012 is 6,149.
	Embryos used in a research project must be allowed to perish as it is unlawful to use them in treatment services.

Medical Treatments: Side Effects

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department takes to record and identify instances where non-pharmacological treatments have caused adverse reactions in patients.

Norman Lamb: Reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are collected by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and Commission for Human Medicines through the spontaneous reporting scheme; the Yellow Card Scheme, The scheme has been in place since 1964 and collects ADR reports from across the whole United Kingdom and includes all medicines, including non-pharmacological treatments such as herbal and homeopathic medicines.
	Reports are received from healthcare professionals and members of the public on a voluntary basis. However there is a legal requirement for pharmaceutical companies to report suspected ADRs to their products. The MHRA receives approximately 30,000 ADR reports per year. All reports received are rapidly entered onto the MHRA's ADR database for assessment by a team of medical, pharmaceutical and scientific assessors. The purpose of the scheme is to provide an early warning that the safety of a product may require further investigation and the scheme has a proven track record of identifying safety issues.
	National health service organisations will also record details of adverse incidents in local risk management systems and other datasets such as the Hospital Episodes Statistics datasets. Many of these systems rely on accurate coding to enable data extract and analysis, and codes specific to non pharmacological treatments may not always be available.

Mental Health

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent progress he has made on ensuring that mental health has equal standing with physical health.

Norman Lamb: Mental health has been a priority for this Government for several years now. We made this commitment explicit in the Health and Social Care Act 2012 which, for the first time, creates equal status for mental and physical health across Government and for the NHS and social care.
	The Ministerial Advisory Group brings together individuals and organisations with a specific interest in the cross government mental health strategy “No Health Without Mental Health” and how it is delivered.
	The Mandate to NHS England 2014-15 makes clear that 'everyone who needs it should have timely access to evidence-based services', this will involve extending and ensuring more open access to programmes, in particular for children and young people, and for those out of work.
	“Closing the Gap”, our new mental health action plan, which has attracted widespread, cross-sector support, sets out our priorities for essential change in mental health, 25 areas where people can expect to see and experience the fastest changes. The document challenges the health and social care community to move further and faster to transform care and support; the public health community, alongside local government, to give health and wellbeing promotion and prevention the long-overdue attention it needs and deserves; and individuals and communities to shift attitudes in mental health.
	The Department of Health is leading an information revolution around mental health. The new national Mental Health Intelligence Network will draw together comprehensive information about mental health and wellbeing.
	The new Crisis Care Concordat, signed by more than 20 national organisations, is a commitment for all agencies involved in supporting someone in a crisis to work together to improve the system of care and support so people in crisis are kept safe and helped to find the support they need. All the signatories have pledged to work together and our expectation is that, in every locality in England, local partnerships of health, criminal justice and local authority agencies will agree and commit to local Mental Health Crisis Declarations.
	System partners are also taking responsibility for the drive for parity. Public Health England (PHE) has made a commitment to addressing parity of esteem through prioritising mental health and working to embed it throughout all PHE programmes. Greater attention is needed to mental health throughout the public health system and PHE seeks to enable and support this through its leadership and delivery of a Wellbeing and Mental Health programme. It is supporting local authorities and other partners to give greater attention to mental health within the public health system.
	PHE was established on 1 April 2013 with the mission to protect and improve the nation's health and to address inequalities through working with national and local government, the NHS, industry and the voluntary and community sector. PHE is an operationally autonomous executive agency of the Department of Health.
	PHE has made a commitment to addressing parity of esteem through prioritising mental health and working to embed it throughout all its programmes. Greater attention is needed to mental health throughout the public health system and PHE seeks to enable and support this through its leadership and delivery of a Wellbeing and Mental Health programme. It is supporting local authorities and other partners to give greater attention to mental health within the public health system.
	Their approach centres on the following five main objectives:
	1. Promoting good mental health and improving population wellbeing;
	2. Preventing mental health problems and preventing suicide and self-harm;
	3. Supporting people living with and recovering from mental illness;
	4. Tackling inequalities and improving the wider determinants of wellbeing and mental health; and
	5. Enabling and embedding wellbeing and mental health across the public health system.
	PHE has embraced the principles of Parity of Esteem and from the outset and all through transition, there has been a commitment by PHE to ensure mental health is a core part of the new public health system and PHE's work. Even though there was no central national resource attached to mental health to be transferred into PHE, they have invested in establishing a presence for mental health across their work and they continue to embed population mental health and wellbeing across public health.
	Health Education England is developing training programmes that will enable all healthcare employers to ensure that their staff have a greater awareness of mental health problems and how they may affect their patients. This will include understanding the links between patient's physical and mental health, so that staff know what actions they can take to ensure that patients receive appropriate support for both their mental and physical health care needs.

Mental Health Services

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 12 May 2014, Official Report, column 401W, on mental health services, whether the Mental Health Intelligence Network has been established.

Norman Lamb: The Mental Health Intelligence Network has been established and is due to launch its web resource and a supporting suite of indicator tools and supporting resources on 18 June 2014.
	The key aim is to provide intelligence to enable better service commissioning and to support service improvement to facilitate the delivery of consistent country-wide best practice care.

NHS: Fees and Charges

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average charge levied by health care professionals for written reports requested by patients who require them for (a) setting up power of attorney and (b) other purposes is in each commissioning area.

Daniel Poulter: The information is not held centrally on charges by health professionals, other than general practitioners (GPs).
	As regards GPs, they are required under terms of contracts for the provision of national health services primary medical services to provide certain medical reports free of charge to their registered patients.
	GPs may also provide other services outside of their contract. Regulations prevent a GP from charging a registered patient a fee for treatment under the contract or otherwise, except in certain prescribed circumstances. However, the provision of reports is not classed as treatment. Consequently, GPs are able to charge for those reports which are not deemed free.
	The Professional Fees Committee of the British Medical Association (BMA) suggests fees for such services to help doctors set their own professional fees. However, these fees are guidelines only, and a doctor is not obliged to charge the rates suggested. Where doctors intend to charge for services to patients, the BMA advises them to forewarn patients, at the earliest opportunity, of the likely level of fees.

Nutrition: Homelessness

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to co-ordinate healthy eating initiatives among the homeless.

Jane Ellison: The Department supports the Inclusion Health programme which champions the health and health care of vulnerable groups, including homeless people. The programme seeks to improve the health data for these groups, and set out practical steps for assessing needs (for example, through Joint Strategic Needs Assessments) and commissioning services. We are also involved in funding work in this area through the Homeless Hospital Discharge Fund to improve hospital discharge arrangements for people who are homeless (£10 million in 2013-14) and £40 million capital fund for hostel refurbishment with a focus on improving health outcomes (2014-15).

Prescriptions: Fees and Charges

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will abolish prescription charges for asthma medication;
	(2)  on what basis the conditions exempt from prescription charges are decided.

Norman Lamb: The list of medical conditions conferring exemption from prescription charges in England was agreed with the medical profession in 1968. The only addition to the list was the introduction of cancer in 2009. Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, then President of the Royal College of Physicians, was asked in 2008 to consider how this might be extended to cover all those with a long-term condition. The Department published his report in May 2010.
	In the light of the challenging financial context, the Government made clear in the Spending Review, published in October 2010, that no changes would be made to the current list of medical exemption. Prescription charges in England raise valuable income, in the region of £450 million each year, which helps the national health service to maintain vital services for patients.
	An extensive system of exemption arrangements, including for those on low incomes who may struggle to pay for their prescriptions, is in place which means that around 90% of all prescription items are already dispensed free of charge. Prescription Prepayment Certificates (PPCs) are also available for those who have to pay NHS prescription charges and need multiple prescriptions. This is the fifth year the cost of an annual certificate, and the third year the cost of a three-month certificate, have been frozen. Both certificates will also remain at £104 and £29.10 respectively, next year. There is no limit to the number of items that can be obtained through a PPC. The annual certificate benefits anyone needing more than 12 items a year, and the three-month certificate anyone needing more than three items in that three-month period.

Secure Accommodation: South West

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many secure places there are in the South West region for children with mental health conditions involving violent behaviour.

Norman Lamb: We are advised that there are no secure services for children commissioned by NHS England in the South West. There are services commissioned in other areas used by children from the South West area.
	We understand that NHS England has identified a number of actions needed to reduce the number of long distance transfers within the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, and is currently considering how to take this forward including any necessary tendering for services in due course.

Sleep Apnoea

Julie Hilling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps his Department has taken to ensure that commissioning of service provision for obstructive sleep apnoea is appropriate to the predicted prevalence in local areas in England;
	(2)  what plans he has to introduce a quality standard for the diagnosis and treatment of sleep disordered breathing covering the range of conditions from simple snoring to obstructive sleep apnoea;
	(3)  what body has responsibility for the implementation of recommendations made by his Department's former Obstructive Sleep Apnoea Working Group;
	(4)  what plans he has to introduce clinical guidelines for the diagnosis, treatment and management of obstructive sleep apnoea; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: NHS England is committed to working with partners across the health system to reduce mortality and improve outcomes for people with respiratory disease.
	NHS England is now responsible for commissioning National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) clinical guidelines relating to national health service services and is responsible for liaising with NICE about the prioritisation of NHS quality standards in development. We understand that NICE has not been asked to develop a clinical guideline specifically on obstructive sleep apnoea.
	NICE has been commissioned to develop a quality standard on sleep disordered breathing and will in due course consider which conditions will be covered under the scope of the quality standard and the need for associated clinical guidance. Local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are responsible for assessing the needs of their local populations and for commissioning services to meet those needs. For patients with obstructive sleep apnoea, NHS England expects CCGs to take into account the NICE guidelines when deciding what services should be made available.
	NHS England currently has no plans to continue the work of the obstructive sleep apnoea working group. However, the National Clinical Director for Respiratory Disease, Professor Mike Morgan, will continue to consider whether any additional specific initiatives or commissioning protocols are needed to promote best practice and treatment for people with obstructive sleep apnoea and to provide advice on this.

Sleeping Rough

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress is being made towards meeting the health goals in the Government's No Second Night Out Strategy.

Jane Ellison: We have met the health goals set out in the No Second Night Out Strategy. Action has included setting up the Homeless Hospital Hospitals Discharge Fund to improve hospital discharge arrangements and provide new post-discharge respite care facilities for homeless people, and publishing guidance (‘Commissioning Inclusive Services’) for local Health and Wellbeing Boards.
	Work continues on improving the physical and mental health outcomes of rough sleepers and we are investing £40 million in 2015-16 to refurbish existing hostels to support health improvement and reduce the demand on health services through a new Homelessness Change programme. This sits alongside Platform for Life, a new programme providing shared accommodation for young people at risk of homelessness, so they have a stable platform for work and study.

Sugar

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will revise the Government's Responsibility Deal to include sugar in the list of ingredients that companies should work with caterers to reformulate in meals as part of the H4 pledge on Healthier Staff Restaurants.

Jane Ellison: There are 169 organisations currently signed up to the H4 pledge which includes a requirement for employers to work with caterers to reformulate recipes to ensure staff meals are lower in fat, salt and energy and do not contain artificial trans fats. There are currently no plans to include sugar in this list of ingredients. However, as part of the Public Health Responsibility Deal, 11 catering companies have signed up to take a range of actions to help people consume fewer calories, including through reformulation to reduce sugar content.

TRANSPORT

Air Traffic Control: Northern Ireland

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he consulted his Northern Ireland counterpart on his Department's publication Guidance to the Civil Aviation Authority on Environmental Objectives Relating to the Exercise of its Air Navigation Functions.

Robert Goodwill: There was no specific consultation with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on this publication.

Aviation: Scotland

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which Scottish airports will benefit from the Regional Air Connectivity Fund.

Robert Goodwill: The Government announced on 6 June that a Public Service Obligation will be established on the air route between Dundee airport and London Stansted airport from 1 July 2014 for a two-year period, with support from the Regional Air Connectivity Fund announced in last year’s Spending Round.
	The Scottish devolved Administration or regional body may apply for access to this fund to maintain an air link from other Scottish airports to London, where there is a risk that an existing link may be lost, and where the case for a Public Service Obligation has been made.
	The Chancellor announced in this year’s Budget that the funding would be doubled to £20 million per year, and also extended to allow for the support for start-up aid for new air routes from UK regional airports. European Union aviation State aid guidelines allow for provision of start-up aid to facilitate start-up of new routes from airports which handle fewer than 5 million passengers per annum. This will therefore cover all Scotland’s airports apart from Glasgow and Edinburgh.
	The Department for Transport is working with the Treasury to develop guidance that will clarify how the Government will ordinarily expect to interpret the European Union guidelines, and explain how the funding process will work.

Bus Services: Visual Impairment

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to help blind and partially sighted passengers travel on buses.

Stephen Hammond: The Department for Transport is committed to ensuring that all disabled people have the same access to transport services and opportunities to travel as other members of society. The Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000 (PSVAR) outline specific requirements for the bus industry to ensure that buses are as accessible as possible for disabled passengers. Latest statistics (September 2013) show that 78% of buses in England now meet PSVAR accessibility requirements, while 92% operate with a low floor facility and these figures continue to grow steadily.
	The Department also recognises that blind and partially sighted passengers find audio and visual announcements particularly useful when travelling on buses. We will therefore continue to encourage bus operators and local authorities to invest in audio/visual announcement systems for their buses where possible. However, we also understand that this technology comes at a considerable cost.
	With this in mind, my noble colleague, Baroness Kramer wrote to bus operators on 4 February 2014 to encourage the development of simpler, more affordable audio/visual announcement systems for buses that can provide benefits to as many passengers as possible. Alongside this, the Department for Transport is also looking into the possibility of establishing a research initiative involving small businesses and academic institutions through the “Transport Systems Catapult” to encourage further innovation.

Carers: Travel

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government Minister for Transport and Veterans on the possibility of providing free or discounted travel for carers in Scotland.

Stephen Hammond: Concessionary Travel is a devolved policy area and the Secretary of State has not discussed carer discounts with Keith Brown MSP, the Scottish Minister for Transport and Veterans.

Cycling

Marcus Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what funding his Department allocated to projects relating to cycling between (a) 2005 and 2010 and (b) 2010 to 2014.

Robert Goodwill: During the five financial years 2005-06 to 2009-10, the Department for Transport (DFT) provided funding for cycling through Cycling England, an arm’s length organisation set up in 2005; in that period, Cycling England received £105 million from the DFT.
	During the five financial years 2010-11 to 2014-15, the DFT allocated a final £63 million to Cycling England, and has allocated direct funding of £224 million for cycling projects, comprising: the £94 million Cycling Cities and National Parks fund, £28.5 million for Links to Schools/Linking Communities, the £35 million cycle safety fund, £14.5 million for Cycle Rail, £4.8 million to the Highways Agency and £46.8 million for Bikeability. In addition, the DFT’s Local Sustainable Transport Fund is providing £540 million for local authorities to prioritise sustainable transport projects, of which 28% or £151 million is being allocated to cycling projects. So total investment by this Government in cycling in the five financial years 2010-11 to 2014-15 is £438 million.
	DFT funding for the LSTF and its Cycling Ambition, Cycle-Rail, and Linking Communities funds is often used to lever matching local contributions. When these other sources are included, spend on cycling in England is equal to £5 per person a year, while spend in the eight cycling ambition cities is around £10 per person a year. From 2015-16, the LSTF forms part of the Local Growth Fund, a long-term funding commitment of £2 billion a year.

Cycling: Children

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will issue guidance on the safe use of bicycle trailers to provide a minimum level of safety for children being towed by bicycles on the roads.

Robert Goodwill: The Department has no current plans to issue guidance on the safe use of trailers on bicycles. However children should be transported safely and securely and trailers should be in a roadworthy condition before being used on the highway.

Driving

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the potential benefits of mandatory display of passed plates by all novice drivers for a minimum period.

Robert Goodwill: None. There is no probationary period for new drivers and no requirement to display a ‘P’ plate. However, the Transport Research Laboratory Report on "Novice Drivers: Evidence review and Evaluation Pre-Driver Training, Graduated Driver Licensing" made a number of recommendations on novice driver safety. One recommendation was that on successful completion of the driving test a driver would be permitted to progress to a probationary licence from age 18. During the 12 month (minimum) probationary licence the driver would be required to display a green ‘P’ plate to identify their licence status and aid enforcement of other recommended restrictions.

Driving Instruction: Warrington

David Mowat: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many approved driving instructors were registered in the Borough of Warrington in each year since 2007.

Stephen Hammond: There are currently 362 approved driving instructors (ADI) with a WA postcode. Please note Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) systems do not hold specific data for the ‘Borough of Warrington’.
	DVSA’s training and registration system is a live database and does not hold historical data; therefore it can provide only the current number of ADIs with a WA postcode.

Driving Tests: Warrington

David Mowat: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of applicants from the Borough of Warrington passed their driving test in each year since 2007.

Stephen Hammond: The information requested is in the following table.
	
		
			  Candidates Passed Passed (percentage) 
			 2007 15,799 7,734 49 
			 2008 15,530 7,727 50 
			 2009 13,359 6,675 50 
			 2010 13,340 6,584 49 
			 2011 13,130 6,533 50 
			 2012 12,125 6,332 52 
			 2013 12,200 6,433 53 
		
	
	Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency systems do not hold specific data for the ‘Borough of Warrington’. The data in the table reflects the number of practical test candidates who registered a WA postcode at the time of booking the test.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that Index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national well-being as defined in that Index since 2010.

Stephen Hammond: The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is measuring National Well-being, not as an index but through a framework of 41 indicators which capture social progress around important aspects of life for individuals, communities and the nation. The statistics are experimental and we would not expect to have examples of major policies that have been heavily influenced by the well-being data at this stage.
	Evidence provided to the Environmental Audit Committee for its Inquiry into Well-being can be found at:
	http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/environmental-audit-committee/inquiries/parliament-2010/well-being/

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  with reference to the answer of 31 March 2014, Official Report, column 408W, on High Speed 2 Railway Line, what the evidential basis is for the expense and disruption caused by double-decker carriages being greater than that caused by High Speed 2;
	(2)  with reference to the answer of 31 March 2014, Official Report, columns 408-9W, on High Speed 2 railway line, whether his Department has subsequently compared double-decking with revised estimates of the costs and effects of High Speed 2;
	(3)  with reference to the answer of 31 March 2014, Official Report, column 408W, on High Speed 2 Railway Line, what the evidential basis for double-decker carriages not releasing sufficient capacity for commuter services is.

Robert Goodwill: As per the answer of 31 March 2014, since 2009 we have considered a wide range of alternative options to a high speed railway including the use of alternative modes, a conventional speed line and upgrades to the existing rail network, including double decking.
	Specifically, the March 2010 High Speed 2 Strategic Alternatives Study considered the potential for using double deck trains on WCML as one means of enhancing capacity on conventional rail routes between London and the West Midlands/North West. Details of this study, including evidence of expense, disruption and capacity, can be found at:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http:/www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/highspeedrail/alternativestudy/pdf/railintervention.pdf
	This work found that while double deck carriages could increase the number of passengers per train there is a practical limit to the expansion of capacity in this manner and it offers limited potential to lead to journey time savings.
	This option is also likely to lead to significant disruption and expense. Before such trains could be used on the West Coast Mainline, the route (including diversionary routes) would need to be gauge cleared to allow sufficient space for the trains to operate. This would involve raising all overhead wires, raising bridges, modifying platforms on the route, modifying station canopies, moving or raising all signal gantries and other signage on the route, and lowering track in the tunnels. Work would need to be carried out to modify existing depots or to provide new ones. Additional works would also be required to enable line speeds to be maintained on the route.
	For these reasons it was concluded that there was a strong case for not considering this option further. No subsequent work has therefore been done to compare it to the case for HS2.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the answer of 31 March 2014, Official Report, column 408W, on High Speed 2 Railway Line, what the evidential basis is for the practical limit to the expansion of capacity on the West Coast Mainline being lower than predicted growth for that line.

Robert Goodwill: Evidence set out in the Strategic Case for HS2:
	www.gov.uk/government/publications/hs2-strategic-case
	demonstrates that parts of the West Coast Main Line are effectively full in terms of the number of trains; many of which are already full to overflowing at certain times of day and demand is expected to grow.
	Rail demand has grown by 54% over the last decade, which is the equivalent of annual growth rate of 4.4%. Chapter 3 of the Strategic case sets out that even with more modest growth of 2.5%, all of the additional peak seats provided by enhancing the line will be used up during the 2020s.
	The Department has considered a wide range of alternatives including upgrades to the existing West Coast Main Line. The most recent report, commissioned from Atkins can be found here:
	www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/253456/hs2-strategic-alternatives.pdf
	This provides evidence that expanding capacity on the West Coast Main line would not be a robust long term solution to the capacity, connectivity and reliability challenges on the line. Not only would it not provide sufficient additional capacity to meet long term demand, but it would not offer a robust solution to the problem of poor service performance and would significantly disrupt services for many years during construction work.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how he expects High Speed 2 to reduce overcrowding at London Waterloo.

Robert Goodwill: High Speed 2 is not intended to reduce overcrowding at London Waterloo, as it has been designed as a link between London Euston, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester.
	The 2012 Rail Investment Strategy (HLOS) has asked the industry to provide additional peak capacity for 9,700 extra passengers into Waterloo by 2019 and has provided funding for Network Rail to expand Waterloo and other stations. Network Rail and South West Trains have set out plans to lengthen peak trains and South West Trains is now in discussions with the Department for Transport.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the excess capacity on peak High Speed 2 services.

Robert Goodwill: The HS2 Economic Case published in October 2013 indicates that the average all-day load factor for HS2 services in 2036 for the full network is expected to be 41%. Peak period load factors are expected to be significantly higher.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish an updated cost benefit analysis for High Speed 2 in light of the decision not to link High Speed 2 with High Speed 1 and Eurostar services.

Robert Goodwill: We will continue to revise and update the economic case for HS2 as new project milestones are reached, such as decisions on the preferred route for Phase 2, to ensure it is based on the best available evidence and latest understanding of the project, including taking account of the decision to remove the existing proposals for the HS1-HS2 link from the scheme.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how High Speed 2 improve reliability and reduce overcrowding on regional links between towns and cities in the North West.

Robert Goodwill: By moving long distance passengers off the existing network, HS2 will release capacity for more regional services, reducing overcrowding and improving reliability, as well as improving connectivity. Nationally, the Economic Case for HS2 found that HS2 will deliver reliability benefits worth £5.5 billion, and reduced crowding benefits of £7.5 billion, which includes benefits to regional services in the North West.
	In response to recommendations made by Sir David Higgins, HS2 Ltd and Network Rail have been commissioned to consider what further improvements can be made to centre to city centre connectivity, east-west links and local connectivity in the Midlands and the North, with a final report on options in 2015.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of people who will move home as a result of the construction of High Speed 2 because of (a) demolition for construction of the line and (b) blight.

Stephen Hammond: There are 464 dwellings within the area currently subject to surface-level safeguarding for the London to West Midlands section of HS2, of which 339 are to be demolished. Given recent Census data showing an average 2.3 occupants per property in the UK, we expect around 1,000 people will move from those homes.
	We have not estimated numbers of people who may move for reasons of generalised property blight, but there are approximately 220 dwellings within the Voluntary Purchase Area for the London to West Midlands Route announced on 9 April. Our aim is where possible to avoid serious impacts on local residents and enable people to remain in their homes. We expect to consult shortly on further measures that may make that choice more attractive for homeowners.
	Pending future decisions on routes and designs, we have made no similar estimates for other proposed sections of HS2.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish a list of properties that have been valued by Carter Jonas under the Exceptional Hardship Scheme for High Speed 2; and whether those valuations have been accepted or queried by the owners of those properties.

Robert Goodwill: To provide the full information as requested would risk compromising the privacy of the applicants. The following anonymised summary information may be helpful:
	For Phase One:
	Carter Jonas has valued a total of 47 properties.
	4 of those valuations have been queried by applicants.
	Carter Jonas valuations have been used to form the offer price a total of 41 times and 35 of these offers have been accepted.
	For Phase Two:
	Carter Jonas has valued a total of 22 properties.
	None of those valuations have been queried by applicants.
	Carter Jonas valuations have been used to form the offer price a total of 20 times and all of these offers have been accepted.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish details of the recruitment of the Independent Residents Commissioner promised by HS2 Ltd in the April 2014 HS2 Residents Charter, including (a) where this position is advertised, (b) the remuneration package offered, (c) the interview process and the interview panel members, (d) the estimated date of any appointments, (e) the Commissioner’s powers and (f) how the Commissioner's independence will be assured.

Robert Goodwill: Details of the Independent Residents Commissioner and Residents' Charter for HS2 are currently being developed and further information will be published in due course.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people have accessed the HS2 Ltd complaints procedure set out in the HS2 Residents' Charter of April 2014; what the details are of each complaint; what the outcome is of each complaint; and what complaints are outstanding.

Robert Goodwill: The complaints procedure, along with other aspects of the Residents' Charter for HS2, is currently being developed and further information will be published in due course.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average time taken to respond by HS2 Ltd to property related compensation enquiries is; and what the longest time taken to respond to such an enquiry has been.

Robert Goodwill: HS2 Ltd aims to respond to all inquiries as soon as possible and within a maximum of 20 working days.
	Performance against this standard was 93% for April 2013 to March 2014.
	A high proportion of these inquiries relate to property compensation but HS2 Ltd does not compile separate performance data for different inquiry types.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has paid to Carter Jonas for work in connection with High Speed 2 to date; and what those payments were for.

Robert Goodwill: £86,851.07 (including VAT) has been paid to Carter Jonas by HS2 Ltd, from 2009 to May 2014.
	These payments relate to the following activities:
	attending property consultations in the capacity of property experts
	providing valuations of properties
	attending properties on the day of completion to facilitate handover
	acting on behalf of clients in receipt of payments regarding HS2 Ltd access to land and environmental surveys
	completing client Land Interest Questionnaires
	undertaking Farm Impact Assessments

Large Goods Vehicles: Driving Tests

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what training is given to driving examiners who test students in laden lorries.

Stephen Hammond: Potential large goods vehicle (LGV) examiners are required to hold the relevant driving licence entitlement for the category of vehicle they will be testing. In the case of laden lorries that is either category C or category CE.
	Initial training courses last five weeks with a ratio of two trainees to each trainer. Courses emphasise health and safety issues connected with working practices, test centres and vehicles. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) conducts regular progress checks which culminate in a final test and end-of-course evaluation.
	Since early 2010 some of the vehicles used to train examiners to conduct category C and CE practical driving tests have been loaded with independent bulk containers to simulate a lorry carrying a commercial load. Consequently during training all potential LGV examiners are trained and examined using loaded vehicles. Before 2010, some category CE training made use of concrete blocks on the trailer to simulate a load.
	DVSA also delivers refresher courses for examiners who have not conducted LGV testing for six months or more which readdress the most important elements of the initial training course.

Large Goods Vehicles: Taxation

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was raised through the implementation of the UK HGV Road User Levy Act 2013 in Northern Ireland in April 2014.

Robert Goodwill: The HGV Road User Levy applies to the UK. Once a levy is purchased for a foreign registered HGV, it is not possible to assign the levy to the specific country (England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland) which the vehicle visits. By the end of April 2014, levy receipts from foreign HGVs visiting the UK were £7.2 million. Cumulative levy receipts from foreign HGVs at the end of May were £10.5 million.

Motor Vehicles

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to promote telematics in cars (a) for young drivers and (b) generally.

Robert Goodwill: The Department is conducting focus groups with young people, parents and employers to gain a better understanding of their perspective on the safety of young drivers, including the use of telematics.
	During a meeting with the insurance industry, the Department agreed to commission new research into how telematics can change the behaviour and attitudes of learner drivers. We are currently working with insurance companies to encourage participation before tendering the research.
	We will publish the findings of both the focus groups and research in due course.

Public Transport

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department has taken to ensure that costs of public transport do not increase.

Stephen Hammond: I recognise concerns passengers have about impacts of fares on household budgets, which is why for the first time in a decade average regulated rail fares have been capped at inflation for 2014.
	Outside London, bus services are deregulated and fares are mainly a matter for the commercial judgement of bus operators. However, the Government has made a commitment to retain the current Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) rate for the remainder of this parliament and has frozen the fuel duty rate until May 2015.
	Public transport costs in Northern Ireland are a matter for the NI Assembly.

Railways

Marcus Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was spent on improvements to the railways in England and Wales in Control Period 4; and what estimate he has made of how much will be spent in Control Period 5.

Robert Goodwill: Over Control Period 4, the total amount spent on enhancements on the railways in England and Wales, as set out in Network Rail's delivery plan update, was £7.557 billion (2012-13 prices).
	Over Control Period 5, it is estimated that £11.446 billion.

Railways: Overcrowding

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport where the greatest overcrowding on the rail network is; and how High Speed 2 will reduce that overcrowding.

Robert Goodwill: DfT publishes statistics showing the levels of peak crowding in a number of major cities each year, based on the proportion of passengers in excess of capacity (PiXC) and the proportion of passengers standing at trains’ busiest points. The latest publication from 2012 is published at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rail-passenger-numbers-and-crowding-on-weekdays-in-major-cities-in-england-and-wales-2012
	The PiXC statistics show that the highest levels of crowding are generally seen on peak London commuter services. In autumn 2012 the highest PiXC levels across the morning and afternoon peaks were on First Great Western services at Paddington, Chiltern services at Marylebone and London Midland services at Euston.
	The Strategic Case for HS2 (www.gov.uk/government/publications/hs2-strategic-case) sets out how HS2 has the capacity to triple the number of seats leaving Euston on the west coast main line corridor. By releasing capacity on the classic network, HS2 will ease crowding on crowded commuter routes into Euston, particularly London Midland services and potentially Chiltern services as well.

Railways: Overcrowding

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure that overcrowding on trains is (a) regulated and (b) effectively monitored.

Stephen Hammond: Capacity provided by franchised rail operators is monitored by the Department through regular passenger counts. The results enable the Department to liaise with operators where capacity problems are identified, and to ensure that potential solutions are investigated.
	It is for the rail industry to plan to fully deploy available rolling stock to best meet passenger demand, and take all reasonable steps to minimise any crowding.

Road Signs and Markings: Northern Ireland

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether officials in his Department consulted their Northern Ireland counterparts before publishing the draft Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2015.

Robert Goodwill: Department for Transport officials worked closely with Northern Ireland colleagues throughout the Traffic Signs Policy Review. A meeting was held with the devolved Administrations in February 2014, at which the proposed changes to the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions were presented.
	The Northern Ireland Executive has also been invited to respond to the public consultation on the draft regulations.

Road Traffic

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to reduce the incidence of traffic jams.

Robert Goodwill: This Government is investing £24 billion on strategic roads in England across this Parliament and the next six years. This includes £317 million, before April 2015, on Highways Agency pinch point schemes tackling congestion and supporting economic growth. We are also providing, before April 2015, £265 million from the Local Pinch Point Fund for 112 projects across England aimed at relieving congestion and supporting economic growth.
	In England, subject to approval, 'Permit Schemes' are available to local authorities in England so that anyone wanting to dig up the road must first apply for a permit to work. This provision gives authorities the power to better challenge how long those works take, to impose conditions, and to co-ordinate works. They can also charge 'over-run' charges to utility companies. The Department is also currently trialling Lane Rental in two highway authority areas, which enables them to charge for works taking place on the busiest roads at the busiest times.
	Outside of England, measures to reduce the incidence of traffic jams are a matter for the respective devolved Administration.

Roads: East of England

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much funding his Department has allocated to each local authority in the East of England for road improvement in each of the last five years.

Robert Goodwill: The Department for Transport provides funding to local highway authorities through a number of funding programmes. This funding includes grant through both the Highways Maintenance and Integrated Transport Block grants. This funding can be used to improve local roads that the authorities are responsible for if they so wish.
	The following tables provide the funding we have allocated to those authorities that fall within the East of England since 2010-11:
	
		
			 Local Highways Maintenance Capital Block Grant 
			 Local Transport Plan Name 2010-11 (£ million) 
			 Bedfordshire (Plan) 7.031 
			 Cambridgeshire 12.809 
			 Essex 23.075 
			 Hertfordshire 17.456 
			 Luton and Dunstable (Joint Plan) 1.284 
			 Norfolk 23.948 
			 Peterborough 8.663 
			 Southend-on-Sea 2.019 
			 Suffolk 18.094 
			 Thurrock 1.484 
		
	
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Local Highway Authority 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 
			 Bedford 3.198 2.800 3.288 3.264 
			 Cambridgeshire 13.394 10.695 12.750 11.662 
			 Central Bedfordshire 4.645 3.920 4.728 5.469 
			 Essex 26.029 19.838 22.482 22.573 
			 Hertfordshire 23.611 18.585 20.962 22.019 
			 Luton 1.404 1.070 1.193 1.255 
			 Norfolk 29.354 21.403 24.230 24.963 
			 Peterborough 3.899 3.029 3.472 3.578 
			 Southend-on-Sea 2.219 1.720 1.795 1.948 
			 Suffolk 22.683 17.668 20.145 20.666 
			 Thurrock 2.194 2.132 2.023 1.990 
		
	
	
		
			 Integrated Transport Capital Block Grant 
			 Local Transport Plan Name 2010-11 (£ million) 
			 Bedfordshire (Plan) 2.539 
			 Cambridgeshire 6.104 
			 Essex 10.455 
			 Hertfordshire 8.755 
			 Luton and Dunstable (Joint Plan) 2.014 
			 Norfolk 8.224 
			 Peterborough 1.818 
			 Southend-on-Sea 1.660 
			 Suffolk 5.061 
			 Thurrock 1.366 
		
	
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Local Authority 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 
			 Bedford 1.101 1.006 1.006 1.415 
			 Cambridgeshire 4.439 4.059 4.059 5.707 
			 Central Bedfordshire 1.464 1.338 1.338 1.882 
			 Essex 9.150 8.366 8.366 11.764 
			 Hertfordshire 6.804 6.221 6.221 8.748 
			 Luton 1.470 1.344 1.344 1.890 
			 Norfolk 5.824 5.324 5.324 7.487 
			 Peterborough 1.640 1.500 1.500 2.109 
			 Southend-on-Sea 1.245 1.138 1.138 1.600 
			 Suffolk 4.508 4.122 4.122 5.796 
			 Thurrock 0.960 0.878 0.878 1.235 
		
	
	Local authorities are also able to use revenue funding, allocated by the Department for Communities and Local Government through the Revenue Support Grant, for maintaining their local highways.
	The Department has also provided funding to highway authorities for local major road schemes set out as follows:
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Local Highway Authority 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 
			 Essex 26.4 26.0 6.2 0.0 0.2 
			 Herts 0.3 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Luton 0.0 0.0 2.5 11.3 2.0 
			 Norfolk 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 19.0 
			 Note: Figures for 2010-11 to 2013-14 are actual spend figures. 2014-15 figures are allocations. 
		
	
	The Department has also agreed to provide funding to authorities through the Local Pinch Point Fund. The Fund is aimed at removing bottlenecks on the local highway network and supporting growth-enhancing development. The Fund has been allocated to the following authorities in the last five years:
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Local Authority Scheme 2013-14 2014-15 
			 Bedford Borough Council Bedford Western Bypass Northern Section 4.500 0 
			 Central Bedfordshire Council Woodside Link Houghton Regis (A5-M1) 2.350 2.650 
			 Essex County Council A176 Nether Mayne, Basildon 0.763 1.583 
			 Essex County Council A414/A1025 (Clock Tower) Junction, Harlow 0.809 2.104 
			 Essex County Council Army and Navy Improvements: A1060 Parkway Widening 0.441 0.675 
			 Essex County Council Army and Navy slip road 0.260 1.191 
			 Norfolk County Council Great Yarmouth A12-A143 Link Road 0.835 3.910 
			 Peterborough City Council Junction 17 A1(M) - Junction 2 Fletton Parkway Widening Scheme 3.385 1.115 
			 Southend on Sea Council A127 B1013 Tesco Junction 0.320 2.943 
			 Suffolk County Council Completion of Lowestoft Northern Spine Road (phase 5) 0 4.635 
			 Note: Pinch Point Funding is available in financial years 2013-14 and 2014-15 only.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the cost of administering the Potholes Challenge Fund.

Robert Goodwill: In the 2014 Budget, the Government announced a £200 million pothole fund for the financial year 2014-15. Some £168 million is being made available to councils in England, including up to £10 million for London. This is enough to fix over 3 million potholes on the local road network.
	The administering of the fund falls under the current operating costs of the Department for Transport and so no additional costs have been incurred.

Roads: Safety

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his policy to research the use of non-slip surfaces for manholes in order to reduce the number of accidents involving motor cycles.

Robert Goodwill: There are various types of manhole covers on the market that have enhanced skid resistance. In addition, the Institute of Highways Engineers has produced guidance on locating manhole covers to reduce the risk they pose to motorcyclists. As such, the Department currently has no plans to commission research on these issues.

Shipping

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency's capacity to discharge its statutory duties to survey and inspect (a) domestic and (b) international shipping.

Stephen Hammond: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)’s current business plan has an operational priority (OP) entitled: “OP2-Ensuring our ship survey, inspection and certification capability, and the parallel work in relation to seafarers, meets our domestic and international obligations”. Progress against this operational priority is monitored on a monthly basis by the MCA Executive Board using a balanced score card system. By this method the MCA is able to assess its capacity to discharge its statutory Survey and Inspection duties.
	The MCA monitors its capacity to discharge its statutory duties to survey and inspect (a) domestic (Flag State responsibility) and (b) international (Port State responsibility) shipping through a system of activity monitoring. Performance against these Survey and Inspection activities feed into the Balanced Score Card for OP2.

Shipping: Pay

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with the (a) UK Chamber of Shipping and (b) European Community Shipowners Association on pay rates for seafarers subject to UK National Insurance payments employed on vessels working from UK ports; and if he will request data on pay rates from maritime employers' associations.

Stephen Hammond: Ministers have not had direct discussions with either body but dialogue at ministerial and official level is continuing with relevant bodies on the wider agenda of seafarer pay.
	The Department is currently reviewing the statistical data it uses and other data sources that may be relevant for future use but this does not include an objective to collect pay rates as this is undertaken by other Departments.

Shipping: Working Hours

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the effect of seafarer fatigue on maritime safety; and what steps his Department is taking to enforce manning levels on vessels.

Stephen Hammond: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and the Marine Accident Investigation Branch were active participants in the multi-partner HORIZON research project, an EC-funded study, which used simulators to identify the effect on seafarers of working hours and interrupted rest. The project report demonstrates conclusively the links between certain watchkeeping patterns and the performance of seafarers (looking particularly at “sleepiness”).
	The Government is committed to reducing the effects of fatigue on maritime safety and the health of seafarers. The output from HORIZON has been used to provide practical guidance to seafarers. The MCA remains involved with research on seafarer fatigue with other industry stakeholders.
	MCA Surveyors routinely inspect UK ships and foreign flag ships in UK waters and verify hours of work records for compliance with the regulations, and check ships are safely manned in accordance the requirements of the International Maritime Organisation convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW).
	The UK is leading the Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control Concentrated Inspection Campaign to ensure compliance with the hours of rest requirements of watchkeepers under STCW which will run from 1 September 2014 to 30 November 2014.

Speed Limits: Urban Areas

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of changing the national urban default speed limit to 20 mph on (a) air pollution and (b) other environmental conditions; what similar studies in other developed nations his Department has assessed; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: The Department does not have any current plans to introduce a default 20 mph speed limit. Local authorities are best placed to determine the speed limits for their areas, based on local knowledge and the views of the community, and have the powers to do so. We are aware of studies carried out for local authorities, including for the City of London, which showed no overall negative effects on air quality in 20 mph speed restrictions.
	However, the Department is about to commission comprehensive research into the effects of 20 mph limits. This will cover many aspects including effects on speed, collisions, casualties and modal shift. The research will also consider air quality, best practice, road users' perceptions and effects on the quality of the environment, as well as relevant research from other countries.

Travel: South East

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what information his Department holds on how many journeys were made between Portsmouth and Brighton by (a) car, (b) rail and (c) bus in each of the last five years for which figures are available;
	(2)  what information his Department holds on how many journeys were made between Southampton and Brighton by (a) car, (b) rail and (c) bus in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Robert Goodwill: The National Travel Survey (NTS) has trip data by mode of transport collected via a 7-day travel diary for residents of Great Britain. However, data are not available for specific local areas as the sample is too small at that level of geography to provide reliable results.
	Some regional level results are available through combining two survey years of data together. The latest results available are for 2011 and 2012 combined. They cover all domestic journeys by all modes of transport, including car, rail and bus.
	Table NTS9903 (at link below) shows the average number of trips per person per year by region of residence.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/259042/nts9903.xls
	Table NTS9905 (at link below) shows the percentage of trips within and between regions.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/259032/nts9905.xls

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to facilitate the integration of remotely piloted aircraft systems into UK civil airspace.

Robert Goodwill: The Department for Transport leads on policy for the operation of civil remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) in the UK. We are working with international Governments, regulators and the industry-including the European Commission and International Civil Aviation Organization on the development of regulation for the safe integration of RPAS into UK and European airspace.
	The UK Civil Aviation Authority and the European Aviation Safety Agency have a statutory responsibility to deal with the detailed Regulation.
	In addition, the Department for Transport currently chairs the cross-Government Working Group on RPAS and sits on the Autonomous Systems Technology Related Airborne Evaluation and Assessment Steering Board, which both seek to enable the safe and routine use of RPAS in all classes of airspace without the need for restrictive or specialised conditions of operation. This will be achieved through the co-ordinated development and demonstration of key technologies and operating procedures.

West Coast Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the answer of 28 April 2014, Official Report, columns 517-8W, on railways: passengers, what the evidential basis is for the stated forecast of increases in passenger numbers on the west coast main line over the next 10 years.

Stephen Hammond: Chapter 4 of Network Rail's West Coast Route Utilisation Strategy describes the evidential basis and modelling approach of the anticipated changes in demand to 2024-25 which are contained in the same document. This is now available at:
	http://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/imagelibrary/downloadMedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=4675

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

GlaxoSmithKline

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Attorney-General what the terms of reference are for the investigation by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) into GlaxoSmithKline (GSK); whether the SFO will investigate (a) GSK's activities within the UK, (b) allegations of bribery of UK doctors, (c) promotion of Seroxat prescribing for children and (d) the 2002 CSM Expert Working Group on the safety of SSRI antidepressants; and whether there is a point of contact for members of the public who wish to help the SFO investigation.

Dominic Grieve: The Director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) recently announced that he has opened a criminal investigation into the commercial practices of GlaxoSmithKline plc and its subsidiaries. The SFO investigation will follow the evidence and it is not appropriate to comment while inquiries are continuing.
	A press release regarding GlaxoSmithKline and information on how to contact the SFO can be found on its website at:
	www.sfo.gov.uk

JUSTICE

Cancer

Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prosecutions have taken place under the Cancer Act 1939 in each of the last 30 years.

Jeremy Wright: The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for offences under the Cancer Act 1939, in England and Wales, from 1984 to 2013, can be viewed in the table.
	
		
			 Defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for offences under section 4 of the Cancer Act 1939, England and Wales, 1984 to 20131, 2 
			  Number 
			 1984 - 
			 1985 1 
			 1986 - 
			 1987 - 
			 1988 - 
			 1989 - 
			 1990 - 
			 1991 - 
			 1992 - 
			 1993 - 
			 1994 - 
			 1995 2 
			 1996 - 
		
	
	
		
			 1997 - 
			 1998 2 
			 1999 1 
			 2000 - 
			 2001 - 
			 2002 - 
			 2003 1 
			 2004 1 
			 2005 - 
			 2006 6 
			 2007 4 
			 2008 - 
			 2009 2 
			 2010 1 
			 2011 - 
			 2012 - 
			 2013 - 
			 1 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Note: Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice.

Driving Under Influence

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many fines have been (a) paid, (b) collected and (c) reduced for alcohol-related motoring offences in each of the last four years;
	(2)  how many fines have been (a) paid, (b) collected and (c) reduced for motoring speeding offences in each of the last four years.

Shailesh Vara: It is not possible to identify from Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals systems how many fines have been (a) paid, (b) collected and (c) reduced for specific offences. This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost as identifying this would require a manual search of all fine accounts.

Fly Tipping

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many people were convicted of fly-tipping in South Staffordshire in each year since 2009-10; and how many such people received the maximum allowable sentence;
	(2)  how many of those convicted of fly-tipping were handed the maximum possible sentence in each year since 2009-10;
	(3)  how many people were convicted of fly-tipping in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11, (c) 2011-12, (d) 2012-13 and (e) 2013-14.

Jeremy Wright: The number of offenders found guilty at all courts of “fly tipping” related offences, in England and Wales, from 2009-10 to 2012-13, and also specifically for South and Central Staffordshire, alongside the number of offenders given the maximum allowable sentence, can be viewed in the table.
	
		
			 Offenders found guilty at all courts for “fly tipping” related offences, South and Central Staffordshire and England and Wales, 2009-10 to 2012-131,2 
			 Offence description  2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 South and Central Staffordshire      
			 Depositing, causing the deposition or permitting the deposition treating, keeping or disposing of controlled (but not special) waste in or on land without a licence3 Convictions 7 8 10 8 
			  Maximum sentence10 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Depositing, causing the deposition or permitting the deposition of controlled special waste in or on land without a licence4 Convictions 4 0 2 0 
			  Maximum sentence11 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Handling, controlling or transferring controlled waste without taking reasonable measures; failure to comply with the requirements of the Secretary of State; failure to take such measures as available to secure transfer of household waste to authorised person or persons authorised for transport purposes5 Convictions 8 3 2 2 
			  Maximum sentence12 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Contravening conditions of a waste management licence6 Convictions 0 0 0 0 
			  Maximum sentence3 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Occupier failing to remove waste or eliminate or reduce the consequences of waste deposited in contravention of S.33(1) EP Act 19907 Convictions 0 0 0 0 
			  Maximum sentence14 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Transporting controlled waste in the course of a business or otherwise with a view to profit without registering as a carrier8 Convictions 2 5 4 0 
			  Maximum sentence15 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Dumping9 Convictions 1 1 0 0 
			  Maximum sentence16 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Total Convictions 22 17 18 10 
			  Maximum sentence 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 England and Wales      
			 Depositing, causing the deposition or permitting the deposition treating, keeping or disposing of controlled (but not special) waste in or on land without a licence3 Convictions 627 688 627 519 
			  Maximum sentence10 1 0 1 0 
			       
			 Depositing, causing the deposition or permitting the deposition of controlled special waste in or on land without a licence4 Convictions 144 82 61 39 
			  Maximum sentence11 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Handling, controlling or transferring controlled waste without taking reasonable measures; failure to comply with the requirements of the Secretary of State; failure to take such measures as available to secure transfer of household waste to authorised person or persons authorised for transport purposes5 Convictions 297 433 432 391 
			  Maximum sentence13 2 0 2 1 
			       
		
	
	
		
			 Contravening conditions of a waste management licence6 Convictions 47 14 13 14 
			  Maximum sentence13 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Occupier failing to remove waste or eliminate or reduce the consequences of waste deposited in contravention of S.33(1) EP Act 19907 Convictions 17 9 7 2 
			  Maximum sentence14 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Transporting controlled waste in the course of a business or otherwise with a view to profit without registering as a carrier8 Convictions 80 163 163 115 
			  Maximum sentence15 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Dumping9 Convictions 76 55 45 38 
			  Maximum sentence16 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 Total Convictions 1,288 1,444 1,348 1,118 
			  Maximum sentence 3 0 3 1 
			 1 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 3 An offence under Section 33(8) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. 4 An offence under Section 33(9) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. 5 An offence under Section 34 (2A) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. 6 An offence under Section 33(6) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. 7 An offence under Section 59 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. 8 An offence under Section 1 of the Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act 1989. 9 Offences under the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978. 10 The maximum allowable sentence for this offence is two years in custody. 11 The maximum allowable sentence for this offence five years in custody. 12 The maximum allowable sentence for this offence is a £5,000 fine. 13 The maximum allowable sentence for this offence is 5 years in custody. 14 The maximum allowable sentence for this offence is a £5,000 fine, plus £500 per day. 15 The maximum allowable sentence for this offence is a £5,000 fine. 16 The maximum allowable sentence for this offence is three months in custody or a £3,000 fine. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice.

Judicial Review

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the new judicial review regulations on people who are fighting eviction or the repossession of a house.

Shailesh Vara: Judicial review is an important way of challenging decisions by public authorities and will remain so. The recently amended regulations do not prevent people receiving legal aid in judicial review cases.
	The Government's policy is that limited legal aid resources should be targeted at those judicial review cases where they are needed most, if the legal aid system is to command public confidence and credibility. We amended the Civil Legal Aid (Remuneration) Regulations 2013 to implement the proposal that legal aid providers should only be paid for work carried out on an application for permission if permission is given by the court, subject to a discretion to pay providers for work carried out on an application for permission in cases that conclude prior to a permission decision. The discretion is held by the Lord Chancellor but will be exercised by the Legal Aid Agency (LAA) on behalf of the Lord Chancellor. The amendments took effect on 22 April 2014.
	An assessment of the impacts of this policy was published alongside the consultation response paper “Judicial Review: Proposals for Further Reform: the Government Response” and is available at
	https://consult.justice.gov.uk/digital-communications/judicial-review
	It is important to reiterate that no change has been made to the availability of civil legal aid to individuals or to eligibility for legal aid for judicial review proceedings. Where a client is in receipt of legal aid, he or she will remain so for the life of the case (unless it is withdrawn for other reasons). We consider that there will remain sufficient providers who undertake judicial review work, taking on cases which they consider to be of merit.
	The Government plans to undertake a post-implementation review of the legal aid provisions within the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 within 3-5 years of implementation. The review will include an assessment of the impact of this change.

Legal Aid Scheme

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will make it his policy to release statistics on the number of refusals by the Legal Aid Agency to pay legal aid in cases settled before the permission stage.

Shailesh Vara: The Legal Aid Agency records information on the outcome of each application for a discretionary payment in respect of remuneration for work on applications for permission for judicial review, where a case concludes before a decision on permission is taken by the court. The Government is considering the best way of publishing this information.

Magistrates' Courts: Prestatyn

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his policy is on the redevelopment of Prestatyn Magistrates' Court.

Shailesh Vara: HM Courts and Tribunals Service continues to keep the use of its estate under review to ensure it meets operational requirements.

Prison Service

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  on what occasions prisons have used detached duty staff from other establishments since 1 September 2013;
	(2)  how many staff of each grade were used as part of the detached duty arrangements in each month since December 2013;
	(3)  how many staff of each grade were available for detached duty arrangements in each month since December 2013;
	(4)  which prisons received how many detached duty staff of each grade in each month since December 2013;
	(5)  how much was spent on accommodation and subsistence for prison officers providing detached duty in prisons in (a) January, (b) February, (c) March and (d) April 2014.

Jeremy Wright: The deployment of staff between prisons on detached duty is a regular and normal part of prison resourcing. It allows staff to be allocated from prisons with the capacity to provide them, to those where additional staffing is required. On average over the three month period (January to March 2013), less than 1% of staff were provided on detached duty. A large proportion of the capacity is typically available from prisons that are in the process of closure or going through a re-role. This process temporarily releases a number of officers who are not supplied for specific occasions but are sent and received on a shift pattern throughout the week.
	The number of staff available for detached duty at any one time is a matter for operational judgment and takes account of overall staff numbers, levels of sickness, prisoner numbers and the regime and security requirements.
	The average weekly provision of staff, broken down by grade, that were received as part of the nationally co-ordinated detached duty scheme , are shown in the tables below for January to March 2014.
	
		
			 Table: Average weekly provision of staff on detached duty to prisons in England and Wales, broken down by grade, January-March 2014 
			 Grade January 2014 February 2014 March 2014 
			 Band 3 200 150 130 
			 Band 4 10 10 - 
			 Total 210 160 130 
		
	
	We have maintained our policy of rounding figures to the nearest 10 in line with the department’s policy for presenting staffing data. The data is only accurate to this level because late updating of data within HR systems means that the unrounded figures recorded for a specific date have a margin of error around them. Totals are formed from unrounded parts prior to rounding. For this reason, rounded totals may not equal the sum of their rounded parts. Values of 5 or fewer are denoted as ‘-’.
	
		
			 Table: List of prisons receiving staff on detached duty by average weekly full-time equivalent provision and grade, January - March 2014 
			  January 2014 February 2014 March 2014 
			 Staffing provision Band 3 Band 4 Band 3 Band 4 Band 3 
			 5 or fewer Aylesbury Brixton Aylesbury Brixton Aylesbury 
			  Bedford Coldingley Bedford Coldingley Brinsford 
			  Belmarsh Guys Marsh Brinsford Guys Marsh Bullingdon 
			  Brinsford Wormwood Scrubs Brixton Wormwood Scrubs Cookham Wood 
			  Bristol  Bullingdon  Gartree 
			  Brixton  Cookham Wood  Glen Parva 
			  Bullingdon  Durham  Guys Marsh 
			  Coldingley  Gartree  Haverigg 
			  Cookham Wood  Guys Marsh  High Down 
			  Durham  Haverigg  Hindley 
			  Erlestoke  High Down  Isis 
			  Gartree  Hindley  Isle of Wight 
			  Haverigg  Holloway  Leicester 
			  Hindley  Humber  Lindholme and Moorland 
			  Holloway  Isis  Onley 
			  Humber  Leicester  Pentonville 
			  Isle of Wight  Onley  Sheppey Cluster 
			  Leicester  Send  Stocken 
			  Manchester  Stocken  The Mount 
		
	
	
		
			  Nottingham  The Mount  Wayland 
			  Onley  Wayland  Werrington 
			  Send  Werrington  Winchester 
			  Sheppey Cluster  Winchester   
			  Stocken  Wormwood Scrubs   
			  Wandsworth     
			  Werrington     
			  Winchester     
			  Woodhill     
			       
			 10 Glen Parva High Down Belmarsh High Down Belmarsh 
			  Guys Marsh  Glen Parva  Feltham 
			  High Down  Isle of Wight  Littlehey 
			  Isis  Lindholme and Moorland  Manchester 
			  Lindholme and Moorland  Littlehey  Nottingham 
			  Littlehey  Manchester  Portland 
			  Norwich  Pentonville  Rochester 
			  Pentonville  Portland  Woodhill 
			  Rochester  Rochester   
			  The Mount  Sheppey Cluster   
			  Wayland  Woodhill   
			  Wormwood Scrubs     
			       
			 20 Feltham  Feltham  Various London Prisons 
			  Portland     
		
	
	Using centrally held financial records it is not possible, without incurring disproportionate cost, to disaggregate the costs of accommodation and subsistence claimed for detached duty from other expenses claimed by staff.

Prisoners: Sanitary Protection

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what types and brands of sanitary products female prisoners are able to purchase from the National Product List; and what the cost of each such product is.

Simon Hughes: Female prisoners can purchase the following sanitary products from the National Product List:
	Sanitary pads—Always Ultra Normal 32s—price £2.69
	Sanitary towels—Tena Lady Normal 12s—price £2.69

Prisoners: Sanitary Protection

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what types and brands of sanitary products are provided to female prisoners free of charge.

Simon Hughes: All prisons across the female custodial estate provide Interlude tampons and sanitary towels to women free of charge.

Public Defender Service

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has for the future of the Public Defender Service.

Shailesh Vara: The Public Defender Service (PDS) will continue to deliver a range of quality services within the criminal defence market from advice and representation at the police station and magistrates courts through to advocacy in the higher courts.

Secure Colleges

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average annual cost is of a place in a new Secure College.

Jeremy Wright: The Government's vision for Secure Colleges was set out on 17 January 2014 in its response to the consultation paper “Transforming Youth Custody”. Secure Colleges will place education at the heart of custody, and equip young people with the skills they need to turn their lives around.
	The current average cost of a place in youth custody is around £100,000 per annum, with some places costing in excess of £200,000. Secure colleges will achieve ongoing savings by operating at a significantly lower cost per place than the current average, while allowing withdrawal from more expensive and inefficient provision.
	The MOJ will not publish estimates of the annual cost per place until the operator competition for the Secure College has been completed, to avoid prejudicing the effectiveness of the competition.

Secure Colleges

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when the construction contract for a Secure College awarded to Wates was put out to tender.

Jeremy Wright: Invitations to tender for the design and build of the Secure College pathfinder were issued under the Ministry of Justice's Strategic Alliance Framework Agreement on 31 January 2014, shortly after we published the Government response to the Transforming Youth Custody consultation on 17 January and announced plans for the Secure College pathfinder in the east midlands.

Secure Colleges

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what fee Wates will receive for the construction contract for a Secure College; and what proportion of the overall budget for a Secure College this fee will represent.

Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice will work with Wates to develop a design for the Secure College pathfinder over the coming months, and will agree a maximum price for the construction once the detailed project proposals have been agreed.

Secure Colleges

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when the construction contract for a Secure College was formally awarded to Wates.

Jeremy Wright: The construction contract for the Secure College pathfinder has not been awarded. The Ministry of Justice has selected Wates as the preferred bidder to design and build the pathfinder. The Project Partnering Agreement, which commits the Ministry of Justice to working with Wates to develop the design for the Secure College pathfinder, will be signed later this month. A further contract, a Commencement Agreement, is required for construction.

Victim Support Schemes

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effect on funding available for victims' services of devolution to police and crime commissioners.

Damian Green: From 1 October 2014 the majority of support services for victims of crime will be commissioned at the local level by democratically elected and publicly accountable police and crime commissioners and this Government is making more money than ever before available to ensure that victims receive the vital support they require.
	PCCs with their knowledge of local victims’ needs are uniquely placed to ensure that available funding is targeted where most required to help victims of crime to both cope with and, where possible, recover from the impacts of crime.
	PCCs are also ideally placed to co-commission with other local commissioners such as health or local authorities, thereby reducing duplication and achieving better value for money.

Victim Support Schemes: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many victims of crime and witnesses were supported by the Witness Service at (a) York Crown court and (b) York magistrates court in each year since 2004-05.

Damian Green: The Ministry of Justice does not routinely collect this data. Victim Support has provided the data based on available information.
	As part of its grant in aid to Victim Support, the Ministry of Justice requires the provision of a court based witness service.
	Victim Support has provided the following figures for 2009-10 to 2013-14 showing the number of people supported:
	
		
			  York Crown court York magistrates court 
			 2009-10 717 606 
			 2010-11 701 405 
			 2011-12 612 368 
			 2012-13 557 333 
			 2013-14 547 870 
		
	
	Whilst crime rates continue to fall, Victim Support continues to support all witnesses who wish to receive support when attending court.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Adult Education

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to educate adults in literacy, numeracy and ICT skills.

Matthew Hancock: Skills policy is devolved so this answer refers to policy in England only.
	One of the Government's priorities is to ensure that all adults have the level of English, maths and digital skills to help them find and sustain employment, as well as achieving other positive outcomes such as improved health and well-being.
	We are implementing a major programme of reform to raise the quality and standards of these vital subjects in adult education which will improve the quality of the teaching workforce, reward the best providers and ensure learners are stretched to achieve the best they can.
	We are investing £30 million this year and next to attract the best graduates to teach in further education (FE) and to provide opportunities for existing teachers to improve their skills. As part of a £15 million bursary scheme between 2013-15 we are offering up to £20,000 to the best and brightest graduates to teach in FE. In January 2014 we announced further measures to improve the workforce including; a golden-hello scheme offering a bonus of £7,500 to maths graduates in their second year of teaching; a recruitment incentive scheme offering £20,000 to providers for taking on a specialist maths graduate teacher; and a subject knowledge enhancement scheme to enable highly qualified graduates who have the skills and aptitude to teach but need to develop some specific maths skills before they start teacher training.
	We have put English and maths at the heart of all our major programmes. From 2014/15 all intermediate apprentices will be required to work towards achieving a level 2 in English and maths and young people undertaking a traineeship will be required to study English and maths unless they already have a level 2 qualification in English and maths.
	We fully fund all adults to achieve their first English and maths GCSE as well as other qualifications which help them get to that level. Our reforms to English and maths GCSEs will make them more rigorous and help ensure that young people and adults develop the skills most relevant to employers. The reformed GCSEs will be available for first teaching from September 2015 and our ambition is for them to become the gold-standard measuring achievement at level 2 for all ages and ability levels.
	We encourage and support a wide range of different and flexible types of provision so that adults can learn in a way that suits them, for example, learning in the workplace, Community Learning including Family English, Maths and Language (FEML) provision, through traditional college courses and using technology and online learning.
	We are making sure jobseekers on benefits have the best chance of finding employment by helping them improve their literacy and numeracy skills. From April 2014, those with poor spoken English which is preventing them from finding work have been expected to train in English, with the possibility of losing their benefit if they choose not to participate. In December 2014, we will launch the 18-21 Work Skills pilot which will test different approaches to teaching and learning and the outcomes of mandating new 18 to 21-year-old jobseeker’s allowance claimants with English and maths below Level 2 to English and maths training for up to 16 hours per week, alongside their jobsearch.
	We have a substantial programme of research to identify the most effective approaches to teaching and learning. In April, I announced the launch of a new research centre with the Behavioural Rights Insight Team to bring the latest findings from behavioural science to bear on the challenges of improving adult literacy and numeracy.
	Basic digital skills are now seen to be as vital as literacy and numeracy, not just for employment but for all aspects of life. The Government's recent Digital Inclusion Strategy set what actions we will take to ensure everyone has these skills. The strategy can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-digital-inclusion-strategy/government-digital-inclusion-strategy
	For its part, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has committed over £30 million over the last 5 years to UK online centres to help more people develop the basic digital skills needed to use a computer, and to get online safely and securely. This has so far helped over 1.25 million people, most of whom were adults, get online. A £1 million extension to the current programme will help another 43,000 people to get online. This is aimed at hard to reach groups, many who are socially excluded. We are currently in the process of tendering a new programme with the aim to get another 1 million people online in the next 3-5 years.

Adult Education

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding was available through the Skills Funding Agency for (a) adult learning courses to support return-to-work programmes and (b) English as a Second Language courses in each of the last three years.

Matthew Hancock: The funding available for Adult Skills is outlined in the Skills Funding Statement. The statement sets out the Government's priorities for the budget and it is for providers to decide how they use their adult skills funding to reflect those priorities and meet the needs of learners and employers in their local area. The Skills Funding Statements 2012-15 and 2013-16 also show in the Data Annex what learning the available funding has supported over the last three years:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skills-funding-statement-2013-to-2016
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skills-funding-statement-2012-2015

Animal Experiments

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many animals have experienced severe suffering in scientific research funded by the Government since 2010; and if he will provide funding aimed at developing scientific advances allowing the reduction or avoidance of severe suffering of animals used in procedures.

David Willetts: The Government do not hold the information you have requested. The Home Office has published advisory notes on recording and reporting actual severity. From data collected, the Home Office will provide clarity on the burden of harm and, over time, should give an indication of the effectiveness of refinement methods, particularly for the most severe procedures.
	It is important to note that procedures classified as severe represent only a small percentage of the total.
	The National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) was established by the Government in May 2004 to advance and promote the replacement, refinement and reduction of animals used in research and testing (the 3Rs). The NC3Rs primarily receives Government funding through BIS from the science and research ring-fenced budget via the Medical Research Council (MRC) and Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). The projected budget for the NC3Rs is £7.88 million in 2014-15 and £7.84 million in 2015-16.
	BBSRC also provides further funding for the 3Rs under its responsive mode schemes, and the MRC and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council support research projects which contribute to the development of new knowledge and new methods that help replace or refine animal use. However, figures on future spend are not available.
	For a detailed breakdown of past funding I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Brighton, Pavilion (Caroline Lucas), on 11 March 2014, Official Report, column 167W.

China

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the Chinese Government on the export of British cheeses to China.

Michael Fallon: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has not had any recent discussions with the Chinese Government regarding the export of British cheese to China. However, officials at the British embassy in Beijing have been in contact with the relevant authorities regarding the recent temporary suspension of imports of British cheese into China. The suspension has now ended.

Credit Rating

Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on a minimum monetary threshold for a late payment which affects an individual's credit rating.

Matthew Hancock: Credit ratings will take into account a number of different variables, including late payment, but it is a commercial judgment taken by credit reference agencies.

Digital Technology: Skilled Workers

Andrew Bingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what plans he has to address the shortage of skilled workers in the digital and technology sector;
	(2)  what progress his Department has made on the Information Economy Strategy published in June 2013.

David Willetts: The Industrial Strategy One Year On Progress Report:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/306854/bis-14-707-industrial-strategy-progress-report.pdf
	published on 23 April, provides an update on progress on the Information Economy Strategy. The Information Economy Council is driving forward action in several areas including addressing skills issues, barriers to growth, and the analysis and use of data sets.
	As a part of our work on skills we have created higher apprenticeships as an alternative to traditional graduate recruitment. In IT higher apprenticeships there have been 420 starts in 2012/13 compared with 60 starts in 2010/11. We have also created cyber security schools programmes, apprenticeships, internships, Centres for Doctoral Training and will shortly be launching a Cyber Security Massive Open Online Course.

Disabled Students' Allowances

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  if he will carry out a public consultation on proposed changes to disabled students' allowances;
	(2)  with reference to his written statement of 7 April 2014, Official Report, columns 1-2WS, on Higher Education: student support, what impact assessment his Department has made of the proposed changes to disabled students' allowances.

David Willetts: We are currently consulting with a wide range of stakeholders to help inform both the Equality Analysis and Disabled Students' Allowances Guidance for 2015/16.
	I will have due regard to an updated Equality Analysis before a final decision is made and regulations are laid before the House.

Disabled Students' Allowances

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many students of each type of main disability are in receipt of disabled students' allowances.

David Willetts: Information on students awarded and paid disabled students' allowance is published annually by Student Loans Company (SLC) in the Statistical First Release “Student Support for Higher Education England”. The latest statistics are available at the following link:
	http://www.slc.co.uk/media/694170/slcsfr052013.pdf
	Information on the disability type for students in receipt of disabled students' allowance is available only at the point of application and so are not included in our routine statistical outputs. The figures provided in the following table reflect the number of applications and do not necessarily correspond to the number of students who were actually awarded and paid.
	
		
			 DSA application data by disability type, Academic year 2012-13, Effective date 10 July 2013 
			 Disability type Number of new DSA applicants assessed as eligible for DSA 
			 Autistic disorder 880 
			 Blind/partial sight 410 
			 Deaf/partial hearing 530 
			 Learning difficulty 21,720 
			 Long-standing illness 2,840 
			 Mental health 3,390 
			 Multiple disabilities 3,560 
			 Disability type not captured 1,080 
			 Wheelchair/mobility 540 
			 Other disability not categorised elsewhere 460 
			 Total 35,390 
			 Notes: 1. Data has been rounded to the nearest 10. 2. The data has been derived from analysing free text fields therefore may not be 100% accurate. 3. Count of applicants refers to new DSA applicants in academic year 2012-13 who have been assessed as eligible for DSA. 4. Applications are for new DSA applications received in academic year 2012-13. 5. Total does not add up due to rounding.

Disabled Students' Allowances: Brighton

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many students received disabled students' allowance in Brighton and Hove local authority area in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14.

David Willetts: Information on students awarded and paid disabled students' allowance is published annually by student loans company (SLC) in the Statistical First Release “Student Support for Higher Education England”. The latest statistics are available at the following link:
	http://www.slc.co.uk/media/694170/slcsfr052013.pdf
	A further breakdown for Brighton and Hove local authority has been provided in the table. Equivalent figures for the academic year 2013/14 will be available from November 2014.
	
		
			 Students in receipt of disabled students allowance from Brighton and Hove local authority 
			 Academic Year 2012/13. Effective date: 13 November 2013 
			 Application type Number paid DSA 
			 Full-time application 450 
			 Part-time application 10 
			 Post graduate DSA 80 
			 Total 530 
			 Notes: 1. Disabled student allowance may be paid to the student or to a supplier on the student's behalf. 2. Figures are derived from the post code of the applicant's home address. 3. The effective date is that of the November 2013 Awards Statistical First Release. The figures are therefore provisional and do not include students who were awarded DSA after November 2013. 4. DSA payments may be made at any point during the Academic Year or after the end of the Academic Year. 5. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10. Totals may not add to the sum of the components due to rounding.

Employment: Young People

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what estimate the UK Statistics Authority has made of the number and proportion of young people aged 16 to 24 in York in (a) training, (b) employment and (c) education in each year since 1995-96;
	(2)  how many young people (a) started and (b) completed apprenticeships in (i) York Central constituency, (ii) York local education authority, (iii) Yorkshire and the Humber and (iv) England in each year since 1995-96.

Matthew Hancock: Data are not available prior to 2000. Estimates for the proportion of young people in training, employment and education separately are not available.
	Information on the number of apprenticeship starts and achievements by geography and age is published in supplementary tables to a Statistical First Release:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/fe-data-library-apprenticeships-2
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/308808/apprenticeship-starts-by-geography-level-and-age.xls
	https://www.gov.uk/govemment/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/296382/apprenticeship-achievements-by-geography-level-and-age.xlsm

Higher Education: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding has been allocated to (a) York College and (b) Askham Bryan College by the Skills Funding Agency and the Young People's Learning Agency in (i) cash and (ii) real terms in each year since 2009-10.

Matthew Hancock: The Skills Funding Agency is responsible for the allocation of funding to further education college for post-19 education and training, and for Apprenticeships for people aged 16 and over. The information requested is available in the following tables.
	Table 1 sets out funding allocations for 2014/15 to York College by the Skills Funding Agency. Previous PQs provided data up to and including 2013/14 academic year.
	Table 2 sets out funding allocations for 2014/15 by the Education Funding Agency (the successor body to the YPLA) to York College. Previous PQs provided data up to and including 2013/2014 academic year.
	
		
			 Table 1: SFA Funding allocations for York College 
			 £ 
			 Academic year  19+ Cash allocation1 Real terms2 
			 2014/15 Adult allocations 3 3,382,992 3,382,992 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: EFA Funding allocations for York College 
			 £ 
			 Academic year 16-18 Cash allocation Real terms2 
			 2014/15 15,900,930 15,900,930 
		
	
	Table 3 sets out funding allocations for 2010/11 to 2014/15 to Askham Bryan College by the Skills Funding Agency. Data is available from the creation of the Skills Funding Agency in April 2010.
	Table 4 sets out funding allocations for 2010/11 to 2014/15 to Askham Bryan College by the YPLA and its successor body, the Education Funding Agency.
	
		
			 Table 3: SFA Funding Allocations for Askham Bryan College 
			 £ 
			 Academic year  19+ Cash allocation1 Real terms2 
			 2010/11 Adult allocations 2,264,811 2,455,137 
			 2011/12 Adult allocations 3,106,679 3,291,154 
			 2012/13 Adult allocations 3,249,205 3,382,422 
			 2013/14 Adult allocations 3 3,045,779 3,108,486 
			 2014/15 Adult allocations 3 2,846,003 2,846,003 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 4: EFA Funding Allocations for Askham Bryan College 
			 £ 
			 Academic year 16-18 Cash allocation Real terms2 
			 2010/11 6,668,827 7,229,250 
			 2011/12 411,277,092 11,946,729 
			 2012/13 12,342,976 12,849,038 
			 2013/14 13,451,499 13,728,442 
			 2014/15 14,840,339 14,840,339 
			 1 Skills Funding Agency allocation data for 19+ participation, additional learning support and discretionary learner support. 2 These figures have been calculated using HM Treasury deflators, last updated 5 December 2013. 3 Includes 24+ Advanced Learning Loans that were introduced in 2013/14. 4 Askham Bryan college took over the land-based provision from University of Cumbria in 2011/12.

Higher Education: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many young people from (a) York Central constituency and (b) City of York local authority area (i) applied for and (ii) started a degree course in each year since 2009-10.

David Willetts: The latest available information on applicants is shown in Table 1.
	
		
			 Table 1: UCAS applicants aged under 211 to full-time undergraduate courses from York Central constituency and York local authority 
			  Year of entry 
			  2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 
			 York Central 470 475 535 450 430 
			 York local authority 1,205 1,225 1,245 1,130 1,085 
			 1 This analysis uses country specific age definitions that align with the cut off points for school and college cohorts within the different administrations of the UK. For England, ages are defined on 31 August. Defining ages in this way matches the assignment of children to school cohorts. Source: UCAS 
		
	
	The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) collects and publishes data on students at UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The number of young (under 21) entrants to UK HEIs who were domiciled in York Central constituency and York local authority prior to starting their course is shown in Table 2. HESA figures for 2013/14 will be available in January 2015. There are differences in the coverage of UCAS and HESA: the UCAS figures cover applicants to HEIs, Further Education Colleges (FECs), and Alternative Providers (APs) of higher education in the UK; the HESA figures cover HEIs only, plus the University of Buckinghamshire. Not all applicants apply via UCAS: some apply directly to institutions. In addition, some applicants who obtain a place via UCAS opt to defer entry until the following year.
	
		
			 Table 2: Young 1 entrants 2 domiciled 3 in York Central constituency 4 and York unitary authority, UK Higher Education Institutions, academic years 2009/10 to 2012/13 
			 Domicile 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 
			 York unitary authority 965 995 1,070 825 
			 York Central constituency 4 4440 385 460 330 
			 1 Young refers to students aged under 21 on 31 August in the reporting year. 2 Entrants refers to students in their first year of study. 3 Domicile refers to a students’ home or permanent address prior to starting their course. 4 Parliamentary constituency boundaries were revised from the 6 May 2010 UK General Election. The figure for 2009/10 refers to the City of York constituency. Source: HESA Student Record

Higher Education: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding for each (a) undergraduate and (b) postgraduate student the Higher Education Funding Council for England allocated to (i) the University of York and (ii) York St John University in (A) cash and (B) at current prices in each year since 1997-98.

David Willetts: The following table shows the amount of grant distributed by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) for teaching and research per full-time equivalent student for each of the years requested. There have been changes in HEFCE's funding methodology over this period, so these tables do not provide like for like yearly comparisons. In particular, the data prior to 1998-99 are not available in a similar format to that for later years.
	
		
			    Cash figures 
			    York St John University University of York 
			  Base price  UG PGT PGR UG PGT PGR 
			 1998-99 £2,662 Funds 4,952,504 29,835 9,477 12,929,019 1,013,979 3,941,856 
			   FTEs 2,176 71 8 4,394.5 550.5 622.6 
			   Rate 2,276 418 1,185 2,942 1,842 6,332 
			          
			 1999-2000 £2,682 Funds 5,363,737 56,807 19,253 14,689,431 1,148,184 599,490 
			   FTEs 2,278.0 119.0 11 4,883.7 584.5 237.0 
			   Rate 2,355 477 1,719 3,008 1,964 2,529 
			          
			 2000-01 £2,731 Funds 5,710,880 46,797 9,813 14,429,476 968,398 613,648 
			   FTEs 2,248.3 109.0 8 4,681.0 483.0 249.5 
			   Rate 2,540 429 1,258 3,083 2,005 2,460 
			          
			 2001-02 £2,805 Funds 6,850,259 51,666 1,610 15,606,079 1,017,459 667,144 
			   FTEs 2,530.6 87.0 2 5,005.0 530.0 254.5 
			   Rate 2,707 594 716 3,118 1,920 2,621 
			          
			 2002-03 £2,870 Funds 6,738,292 25,183 954 16,890,816 920,051 597,943 
			   FTEs 2,448.5 113.6 1 5,347.0 535.0 227.5 
			   Rate 2,752 222 954 3,159 1,720 2,628 
			          
			 2003-04 £2,808 Funds 7,398,683 47,555 2,646 17,368,394 976,328 616,426 
			   FTEs 2,476.0 108.0 4 5,584.0 587.0 238.0 
			   Rate 2,988 440 662 3,110 1,663 2,590 
			          
			 2004-05 £3,484 Funds 8,674,927 39,794 5,833 19,573,908 948,967 695,924 
			   FTEs 2,463.1 111.0 4 5,854.2 639.5 225.0 
		
	
	
		
			   Rate 3,522 359 1,458 3,344 1,484 3,093 
			          
			 2005-06 £3,608 Funds 9,234,557 28,016 0 20,684,286 893,106 0 
			   FTEs 2,499.0 80.0 0 6,016.5 580.0 0.0 
			   Rate 3,695 350 n/a 3,438 1,540 n/a 
			          
			 2006-07 £3,721 Funds 10,062,003 48,864 0 22,742,134 1,144,124 0 
			   FTEs 2,582.1 96.0 0 6,200.8 684.3 0.0 
			   Rate 3,897 509 n/a 3,668 1,672 n/a 
			          
			 2007-08 £3,833 Funds 10,617,720 77,064 0 25,094,421 1,245,662 0 
			   FTEs 2,605.9 120.1 0 6,442.9 681.5 0.0 
			   Rate 4,075 642 n/a 3,895 1,828 n/a 
			          
			 2008-09 £3,964 Funds 10,007,467 59,616 0 27,080,209 1,027,227 0 
			   FTEs 2,454.0 64.3 0 6,624.6 537.6 0.0 
			   Rate 4,078 927 n/a 4,088 1,911 n/a 
			          
			 2009-10 £3,947 Funds 10,258,008 65,646 72,126 28,697,321 407,717 3,537,180 
			   FTEs 2,773.2 95.5 15 7,426.8 560.0 671.5 
			   Rate 3,699 687 4,808 3,864 728 5,268 
			          
			 2010-11 £3,951 Funds 9,803,245 43,090 82,963 29,649,309 402,751 3,329,509 
			   FTEs 2,717.0 116.2 19 7,869.6 561.0 676.5 
			   Rate 3,608 371 4,366 3,768 718 4,922 
			          
			 2011-12 £3,670 Funds 9,613,815 74,480 106,146 30,212,888 515,555 3,308,911 
			   FTEs 2,722.5 122.6 26 8,468.5 673.8 711.0 
			   Rate 3,531 608 4,098 3,568 765 4,654 
			          
			 2012-13 (final)  Funds 6,603,696 25,808 32,230 20,468,001 549,602 4,073,426 
			   FTEs 3,168.9 68.8 15.3 9,038.1 715.9 680.2 
			   Rate 2,084 375 2,113 2,265 768 5,989 
			          
			 2013-14 (adjusted)  Funds 4,119,752 31,542 32,818 14,094,459 495,831 3,962,711 
			   FTEs 3,474.9 57.1 16.3 9,321.9 703.7 694.4 
			   Rate 1,186 552 2,020 1,512 705 5,706 
			          
			 2014-15 (initial)  Funds 1,522,646 31,998 40,665 7,796,656 595,182 4,067,118 
			   FTEs 3,586.0 59.0 19.3 9,529.5 686.1 715.0 
			   Rate 425 542 2,107 818 868 5,688 
		
	
	
		
			    Current figures 
			    York St John University University of York 
			  Base price  UG PGT PGR UG PGT PGR 
			 1998-99 £2,662 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 3,178 584 1,654 4,107 2,571 8,839 
			          
			 1999-2000 £2,682 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 3,237 656 2,363 4,135 2,700 3,477 
			          
		
	
	
		
			 2000-01 £2,731 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 3,444 582 1,706 4,180 2,719 3,335 
			          
			 2001-02 £2,805 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 3,578 785 946 4,122 2,538 3,465 
			          
			 2002-03 £2,870 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 3,559 287 1,234 4,086 2,224 3,400 
			          
			 2003-04 £2,808 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 3,781 557 837 3,936 2,105 3,277 
			          
			 2004-05 £3,484 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 4,350 443 1,801 4,130 1,833 3,820 
			          
			 2005-06 £3,608 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 4,467 423 n/a 4,156 1,862 n/a 
			          
			 2006-07 £3,721 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 4,585 599 n/a 4,315 1,967 n/a 
			          
			 2007-08 £3,833 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 4,672 736 n/a 4,466 2,096 n/a 
			          
			 2008-09 £3,964 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 4,549 1,034 n/a 4,560 2,131 n/a 
			          
			 2009-10 £3,947 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 4,017 747 5,222 4,196 791 5,721 
			          
			 2010-11 £3,951 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 3,823 393 4,626 3,992 761 5,214 
			          
			 2011-12 £3,670 Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 3,664 630 4,252 3,701 794 4,828 
			          
			 2012-13 (final)  Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 2,124 382 2,154 2,308 783 6,104 
			          
			 2013-14 (adjusted  Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
		
	
	
		
			   Rate 1,186 552 2,020 1,512 705 5,706 
			          
			 2014-15 (initial)  Funds - - - - - - 
			   FTEs - - - - - - 
			   Rate 416 532 2,066 802 851 5,577 
			 Note: The reforms to HE funding which this Government introduced in 2012/13 have seen grant that HEFCE makes to universities reduce as the income that universities receive from students increases.

Higher Education: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many applications for undergraduate study were made to (a) the University of York, (b) York St John University and (c) all English universities in each year since 2009-10.

David Willetts: The latest information is given in the following table. UCAS have not released any data on applications to individual institutions for the 2014 application cycle, but the latest figures for total applicants to all UK institutions (published on 30 May) show that they have risen by 4%, compared to the same point in 2013.
	
		
			 UCAS main scheme applications to University of York, York St John University and England, 2009 to 2013, full-time undergraduate courses 
			  2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 
			 University of York 21,543 24,548 23,725 23,570 25,030 
			 York St John University 6,194 7,685 8,657 9,600 9,700 
			 All institutions in England 2,021,546 2,303,678 2,418,828 2,209,337 2,265,95 
			 Notes: 1. Each applicant can submit up to five applications. 2. Figures cover applicants who applied during the main UCAS application scheme which closes on 30 June. Applicants who subsequently applied during clearing are not included. Source: UCAS reference tables.

Post Codes: Northern Ireland

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether public sector organisations in Northern Ireland will be eligible for the terms of use for postcode address finder from 1 April 2015.

Jennifer Willott: Northern Ireland public sector organisations will be not eligible for the Postcode Address File (PAF) Public Sector Licence agreed between the Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills (BIS) and Royal Mail. The PAF Public Sector Licence covers public sector bodies in England and Wales and will come into full force on 1 April 2015. Bodies whose remit is mainly or wholly within Northern Ireland, Scotland, and other Crown dependencies or foreign territories are excluded from the agreement between BIS and Royal Mail.
	Royal Mail discussed the creation of an equivalent to the PAF Public Sector Licence with the Northern Ireland Land and Property Services. The view was that most of Northern Ireland's Government Departments were only interested in addresses within Northern Ireland and that there was no need for a central agreement.

Research: Gender

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment she has made of the gender balance amongst chairs and presidents of (a) learned societies and (b) research councils.

David Willetts: The National Academies, the UK's leading learned societies, are independent, self-governing bodies. Ministers have no role in academy appointments but we encourage them to embed equality and diversity in everything they do. Professor Dame Ann Dowling is expected to be confirmed as the first female President of the Royal Academy of Engineering in September. The current Presidents of the Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Society of Biology are all female.
	Ministers in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) appoint chairs to the research councils and these appointments are regulated by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. BIS Ministers are committed to the principle of public appointments on merit through an open and transparent process and to providing equal opportunities for all, irrespective of race, age, disability, gender, marital status, religion, sexual orientation, transgender and working patterns. There are seven research councils, the chairs of which are currently male. The research councils are committed to improving diversity in their public appointments and held a workshop in March 2014 to agree an action plan to increase the diversity of each council. The action plan will be published on the RCUK website and disseminated to all council members.
	The BIS Board, which provides collective strategic leadership of the Department, has endorsed a plan of activity and a number of actions to help the Department not only to improve its position on gender-diversity during 2014/15 but to reinforce its continued commitment to attracting a strong and diverse field of candidates to public appointments.

Shipping: Minimum Wage

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what recent (a) correspondence and (b) discussions he has had with individual employers in the maritime industry about pay rates below the national minimum wage (NMW) for seafarers subject to UK national insurance employed on vessels working from UK ports; and if he will take steps to enforce in the maritime sector his Department's policy on enforcement, prosecutions and naming employers who break the law on the NMW;
	(2)  what recent discussions he has had with the (a) UK Chamber of Shipping and (b) European Community Shipowners Association on pay rates for seafarers subject to UK national insurance employed on vessels working from UK ports who are paid hourly rates below the national minimum wage; and if he will request data on such pay rates from maritime employers' associations.

Jennifer Willott: The Department is beginning engagement with a range of stakeholders from the maritime industry to fully understand issues surrounding payment of the minimum wage. To date we have met with officials in other jurisdictions as this policy area is affected by legislation outside the UK. We will go on to engage with individual maritime employers and their associations. We will be discussing recruitment models and pay structures as part of this engagement. Following these investigations, we will consider whether further enforcement activity is needed in this sector.
	This Government remains committed to the minimum wage and the protection it provides to low paid workers. That is why we have strengthened the enforcement regime by cutting back the criteria for naming and shaming non-compliant employers and have increased the penalty from 50% to 100% of arrears up to £20,000. We are also taking primary legislation to apply a penalty per underpaid worker rather than per non-compliant employer.
	Where employers in the maritime industry are found to not be paying the national minimum wage that workers are entitled to, we will not hesitate to take action, including recovering arrears owed to workers and penalising employers financially and their reputation by naming and shaming where appropriate.
	Workers in the maritime industry who think they have not been paid the correct national minimum wage should contact the Pay and Work Rights Helpline on 0800 917 2368.

Space Technology

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department has invited representatives of the devolved administrations to join the ad hoc ministerial-led steering group on the implementation of his Department's national space security policy.

David Willetts: The UK Space Agency and the Ministry of Defence are jointly leading work to co-ordinate an implementation plan for the National Space Security Policy that should be agreed between Ministers in the four lead Government Departments by the end of the calendar year. This plan will include the governance arrangements to oversee its successful implementation. Although Defence and National Security are not devolved matters, devolved Administrations will be consulted where it is necessary or appropriate to do so.

Space Technology: Northern Ireland

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to ensure that industry and academia in Northern Ireland are able to benefit from opportunities in support of national space security interests.

David Willetts: As part of the Northern Ireland pact published last year, the UK Space Agency is currently setting the business case for an investment in a satellite propulsion test facility near Belfast. This capability could be used for satellites employed in commercial and security uses.

Space Technology: Northern Ireland

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions officials in his Department had with their counterparts in the Northern Ireland Executive before publication of the National Space Security Policy.

David Willetts: Prior to the publication of the National Space Security Policy, committee clearance was requested via the National Security Committee by me which was confirmed on 12 December 2014. Although Defence and National Security are not devolved matters, devolved Administrations will be consulted where it is necessary or appropriate to do so.

UK Coal

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the conclusions of the Orion Innovations report entitled Merits of UK Coal State Aid Application, submitted to his Department on 9 May 2014;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the report, Merits of UK Coal State Aid Application submitted to his Department on 9 May 2014 by Orion Innovations.

Michael Fallon: I asked officials to review the report and discuss it with the author. This included a discussion on the background to the report and an explanation from Orion of the methodology and conclusions made in the report. Furthermore, they questioned the detail of the analysis, the robustness of the assumptions and areas for further development. Their conclusions are that the report is a high level analysis of the key issues and that it would require significant further work, diligence and validation of assumptions and contingency. It also requires enhancements to methodology, for example, to model the phasing of cash flows and include time value of money considerations and appropriate returns to capital. Orion has noted that the work was completed on a short time frame and that they would be open to carrying out further work if a mandate could be agreed. On this basis, it is not possible to draw conclusions sufficient to inform any investment decision.